


A Story Untold

by Jay2Noir



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Arson, Blow Jobs, But I'm new at the tag so I may be wrong., Celebrations, Drugs, Drunk Sex, Drunkenness, F/M, Female Character of Color, Fires, Force Healing, Hand Jobs, Hangover, Kings & Queens, Praise Kink, Tag As I Go, The First Order, drug bust, fear of technology, kinda enemies to lovers, mutual praise kink, warriors - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2019-10-31 17:11:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 73,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17853740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jay2Noir/pseuds/Jay2Noir
Summary: You are your planets queen, the rightful heir to the throne after your parents untimely passing. You know the duties expected of you, you know you must keep your people happy and healthy, but when you’re so young and so inexperienced you find yourself relying heavily on other people to make your decisions. You struggle to rule your planet, every day is full of second guesses and internalized torture.Then came the attack.They stormed your planet, they pushed their way to your castle where you were recovering from a rough hangover and they made their demands. They woo you, they tell you that you can save your people if you just hand over your planet to them, but you know it’s not what your parents would want. But what else can you do? Your planet is suffering and you constantly put the blame on yourself. This is the one thing that can be done to remedy the situation, to partially give up the throne and entrust your people in the hands of the First Order. But are you able to trust yourself in the hands of their General, the man you are forced to marry?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tybieron](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tybieron/gifts).



> This is a requested work from Tybieron that I received over on Wattpad. I make no claims to the original plot, just writing it out for them!

Celebrations were rare on Ellone. But when they were thrown for any reason whatsoever, the citizens partied and they partied hard. Any other time I was prim, proper, and the queen my people needed. I was set to receive a mate who would aid me in my ruling, whenever I ended up finding one. But I wasn't rushing, in fact instead of trying my best to find someone I instead decided to throw a wedding celebration with my best friend, Aurine.

I lived in a castle deep in the jungle, most of my planet was made up of thick jungles and forests and it provided me quite a lot of privacy. This is what I was used to, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. The celebration was taking place in the back of my castle, I invited everyone I could think of to observe her wedding, and afterword we partied until the sun came down. While everyone was dressed in formal attire for the actual wedding, once everything was said and done we were all dressed down, showing skin and dancing to the loud music that blared throughout the back of my home. There was dancing, drinking, laughing, and playing as we all lifted our good vibes for Aurine and her husband Vekis. On Ellone, we were all family, we looked after one another and loved one another, Aurine was like my sister and it made me happy to see her having a good time.

The loud music numbed me as Aurine and I danced with one another, both of us wore nothing but our forest green bikinis as we had taken a short dip in the waterfall lake near my home with some friends before heading back to the dance floor again. I had invited both her and Vekis to move into the castle with me but they had both politely declined. They probably didn’t think I was serious as we were both so drunk we could barely talk, but I was. I was a miracle child, born when my parents were older than anyone would be willing to admit which meant they had passed away to old age when I was just 22 years old. They had told me that I was meant to be the tail end of ten children, but none of my brothers and sisters ever survived. My mother told me she had given birth twice before me, but they were both stillborn children. Thus, the castle was left to me and only me, and even with a full staff of people to cook my food, do my laundry, clean, and handle my political affairs, I was still lonely. 

My mother died first, out on the patio while we were having breakfast she had a heart attack and fell over in the chair. The medics performed CPR for as long as possible but ended up calling her time of death at 9:08 AM. I was crushed, knowing her only wish was to see me grow up and carry on our bloodline meant I had failed her, at least for the time being. At her funeral I promised dad that I would try my best to find someone worthy to share the throne with, but unfortunately he passed away just two weeks later. I like to think it was due to a broken heart, the man had experienced so much loss during his life and he couldn’t handle the loss of his one true love.

So now, I rule alone. Not even thirty yet and I’m responsible for thousands of individuals. I try to keep my people happy, I try to do what’s best for them, but most of the time I find myself relying heavily on my advisors. They tell me the citizens are hungry, I tell them to get them more food, they tell me it’s impossible, I tell them I don’t know what to do then. They tell me we’re running out of resources and credits, I tell them to find another source, and they tell me there is none. I know we’re struggling, I know my people are unhappy, but there’s nothing I can do about it. Sometimes, I feel like I’m not meant to rule, so instead I organize celebrations for my friends. At least when we’re partying we’re happy, and that’s what a good ruler is meant to do, right? A good ruler keeps their people happy. 

As Aurine and I were having a good time I noticed that the people around us had stopped moving. The music was still playing, and some people were still awkwardly moving about while others had just completely stopped. Everyone's attention was focused on something to their left, and it would seem that I was too late in turning around to see what the commotion was about. 

“The, the Queen!” Shouted a man from outside of the crowd. It was as if the world moved in slow motion as I watched everyone’s heads turn toward me, then the crowd parted to reveal one of our soldiers staggering toward us. “The Queen!” He shouted again, and when he noticed me standing in the middle of the crowd he did his best to get to me as fast as he could. 

The first thing I noticed about him was the positioning of his hand on his abdomen. Although I was quite drunk I could make out that he was in pain, and the source of his pain would lie under his hand. I stepped forward just as he had made his way into the crowd, and once we met in the middle I bumped into him, causing him to fall backward with a pained cry. He was out of breath, obviously having exerted a large amount of energy to traverse the jungle paths up to my fortress with such an injury. He had finally moved his hand and I had finally seen what ailed him: a hole in his lower right quadrant. 

“What’s happened to you?!” I cried out, slurring my words. The emergency sobered me up just a bit, but I could still tell I was simply too out of it to handle such a horrifying situation. I could vaguely make out the gasps, moans, and groans of my people around me, they all expected me to do something to help him, but I lacked the medical knowledge to do so. I called out for a medic as I drunkenly fumbled around his wound, trying to compress it to stop the bleeding before he began coughing and trying to explain himself.

“They’re, they’re coming, my Queen.” He rasped, but I could hardly understand him. “We, we fought as hard as we could, but their weapons are far superior to ours. They, they shot lasers at us, firey beams that have made so many of us fall on the shore.” I could feel myself beginning to cry as my hand warmed under his bleeding wound, I nearly toppled over on top of him as I looked down to see my entire hand stained deep red. “One wielded a sword that was red and cackling with fire. None fell to us, and I could fight no more. I ran to warn you and everyone else that they’re coming. They’re near, and they will destroy us!” He shouted so loud I could practically feel his fear and soundwaves pushing against me. I fell to the ground in front of him while the others began panicking and running about. There was so much commotion going on around me, people began running back and forth, screaming, and panicking while I sat there completely drunk and useless. I tried to stand to my feet, to regain some kind of order at my own castle but before I could even sit up I was taken into someone’s arms, hoisted over their shoulder and carried back up to my castle. The last thing I could remember seeing was the massive blur of colors as my people begged to be let inside, into the safety of my own fortress while whomever held me made yet another queenly decision for me. I could only hope that my people would be safe without me.

 

I was made to sit in my bedchamber, made to eat small pieces of bread and drink fresh water after one of my maids helped clean my hands and face. I sat at the table where I often ate my breakfast that was brought to me simply wallowing in my self-pity, wondering what kind of Queen would get drunk during their planets time of need. I had never even heard of such weapons before. Lasers? Wasn’t that something that only existed in the future, or on far richer planets than ours? A long time ago, my great-great grandparents decided that our planet wouldn’t need outside help from anyone. My family ruled all by ourselves and we never accepted help from anyone else. Our soldiers were trained in hand to hand combat as well as to fight with our handmade weapons; our spears, our battle axes, our swords, and until today we only had great results. Our planet was able to survive off of its own resources, to fight away anyone or anything that threatened our peace and safety, but not today. Not with me sitting on the throne by myself, and not when these enemies from the future had struck down my entire army.

A headache began brewing in my head as I realized I would need to drum up the courage eventually to look out my window, to see what was going on and if my people made it out alive. My biggest fear was that I would look outside and see everyone slaughtered, right under my bedroom window where I, their Queen, was powerless to help them. I sucked some snot through my nose as the seconds ticked by, there must have been something I could do. I stood, and on my still wobbly legs I hobbled over to one of my grand windows the overlooked the balcony where my gathering was held and I saw next to nothing. There were no people, there was no music, no blood, no destruction. Just my empty balcony--a stark difference from where I left it.

Just as I was about to turn and walk back to my small plate and call one of my maids for another herb to ease my pain, I saw something out of the corner of my eye that struck me nearly off of my feet. I whipped my head around so hard that I stumbled into my own window, drawing the attention of what appeared to be an all-white robot marching across my back yard. It looked up at me and I stared into the black, lifeless holes where its eyes would have been if it were a person. Its mouth was a thin black line that connected to the corners of its eyes, and the rest of it looked to be made up of hard metal. In its hand sat what appeared to be some kind of weapon, a  _ gun  _ as my parents had taught me when I was younger. My heart pounded against my chest as terror rushed through my veins at the sight that stood before me. Technology, I had always been taught to fear it and be skeptical of those who present it to us. The fact that this robot was staring up at me, completely emotionless and soulless, shook me to my core.

It lifted its plated finger toward me, looked away from my window for just a second as its other arm came up and seemed to call toward someone that I couldn’t see. I was frozen in fear as three more robots joined the first I had seen, and all four were staring up at me. They looked at each other, from their “body” language I could infer that they were communicating somehow. My mouth fell open as I stared back at the curious looking robots, wondering just what they were talking about. Obviously it had something to do about me, the way they had pointed at me and were still staring. It was terrifying, and I finally figured out a piece of their conversation when the original robot raised its weapon at me, pointed it directly at my head and then cocked it back, almost as if he had actually shot at me. My reaction time was still slowed as I stumbled away, knowing that this kind of torture could not take place on my soil. These intruders had officially threatened the Queen of this planet, and even if they hadn't shot me I had every right to assume they would have harmed my people.

With a thundering headache rolling throughout my cranium and vertigo threatening to send me falling ungracefully to the floor, I tumbled out of my room and through the halls of my castle. I did my best to navigate through my hangover, carefully traversed down the stairs looking for any kind of commotion going on. I knew that the people who stormed my planet were here, they were trying to make negotiations with me in my castle. Obviously they couldn’t because I was inebriated, but that wasn’t the point. They could be terrorizing my citizens just as they terrorized me in my own home, and I wanted them off my planet!

I passed by one of my maids and stopped them, asking them if they had seen any of my negotiators or assistants. She looked at me quite puzzled, looked at me up and down before making a comment about my slurred speech.

“Now’s not--now’s not the time!” I shouted above her, wobbling as my sinuses pulsated. The herbs weren’t working fast enough, and I needed answers before my people were destroyed. “Where is Victor? He must be negotiating with these robot people, he must be!” 

“Er,  _ robot people,  _ my queen?” She asked, and I rolled my eyes so hard that I was certain I could see the inflamed blood vessels in my brain. “Just tell me where Victor is!” I demanded, she went into some kind of speech but it was difficult for me to pay attention to her. I managed to catch that my lead negotiator and one of my most prized advisors, Victor, was hold up in my conference room. I didn’t bother thanking her since she had wasted so much of my valuable time, instead I paced quickly through the corridors of my home, my bare feet smacking against the linoleum while my long white, breezy skirt swayed in the wind behind me. I was still dressed in my bikini but had enough sense in my post drunken haze to cover myself before I left my room. My people and I were used to dressing in such little due to the humidity and heat, I didn’t think it would be an issue.

But, unfortunately, I was wrong. I burst through the doors of the conference room and was faced with a multitude of people that definitely were not from our planet. There were more white robots, there were people who were perhaps overdressed in heavy coats, long pants, and gloves. What I feared the most, however, sat across the table facing me. It looked like it could have been a man, but the black thing that concealed his entire head told me otherwise. There were no facial features, only a strip of black void space surrounded by strips of silver where eyes should have been. The rest of him was covered in black, head to toe and it  _ terrified  _ me. He just like the robots outside of my window were inhuman, and I couldn’t believe they were here, uninvited in my home.

“M-My Queen!” Victor stood from the end of the table, acknowledging me in surprise while everyone else gawked at me from their seats. “My Queen, this doesn’t involve you. Please, let Sonja escort you back to your bedchamber. I’ll send for you when we are finished here.” I looked over at him with wide eyes, hardly taking in anything that he said. “Victor!” I exclaimed, reaching out and steadying myself in his arms. “What is going on? Who are all these people in my home!?” I demanded answers, but thought for sure that I was sounding like a terrified child. Partially because I was, indeed afraid, and partially because I was, indeed, a terrified child.

Victor’s grip on my arm tightened and I thought I heard him beginning to speak but I was too focused on the robotic man standing and making his way around the table toward us. The other men and women clad in black uniforms stared on, some of them even looked uncertain of what their own person would do to me. It didn’t make me feel any better, in fact as we stood toe to toe I felt as if I could pass out right then and there. 

“Supreme Leader Ren, please. I beg of you not to intimidate our Queen in this manner.” Victor said, trying his hardest to step in between the two of us. It was clear he was as afraid of the man in black as I was, he refused to touch him opting instead to push me away. “Your, _Q_ _ ueen?”  _ He said, his voice was cold, distant, monotonic and, dare I say, robotic. By this time I was more than 100 percent certain he was a robot and my people were about to be slaughtered by an army of them. “This hung over, half-nude child is the person you answer to?” He asked, looking in Victor’s direction. “Supreme Leader, please. I promise I’ll explain everything! Just please let her--”

Victor’s speech was cut off by the man raising his arm. His gloved hand hovered right in front of my face and he flexed his fingers ever so slightly. I immediately became alarmed, in fear that these lasers would shoot from his fingers and into my skull, or that he’d be putting a spell on me or something like that. I closed my eyes and tumbled into the wall in a feeble attempt to get away, fully expecting to meet my death. 

But that couldn’t have been further from the actuality. 

It felt as if there was a pair of invisible hands in my mind, cradling my brain and ripping away the headache. My body seemed to be floating, tingly as I felt my hangover simply fly away from me. I was healing at light speed, my ailments melting as the invisible hands that ran all over my body. The man closed his hand into a fist and quickly brought it back down to his side, and as soon as he did it was as if I hadn’t been drunk at all. I looked down the length of my body, ran my hands over my stomach and finally let my fingers rest on my forehead. I was cured, healed of everything that was working against me. I took yet another horrified look at the man in front of me, having only heard of this kind of magic in stories from my parents I was completely confused. Just who was this person, how did they find my isolated planet, and what were they planning on doing to me and my people?

“Now, you so-called Queen.” He spoke, stepping out of my way and pointing at an empty chair on the side of the table. “Be a proper leader, have a seat and listen to my demands. I will only list them once.” Everyone around the room was staring at me, my people more afraid than his were. I had no choice, I had to be the Queen my citizens needed and fight for their well being. I had to be the leader my parents always wanted me to be. 


	2. Chapter 2

Victor was kind enough to send for a sweater for me, but not even the heavy garment in the warm room made me more uncomfortable than the man dressed in all black that sat across from me. I stared blankly at him as he spoke in terms I didn’t understand, and it wasn’t due to a language barrier. It was due to the fact that the man used words, big words that I had never even heard before. Words like ‘deadlock,’ ‘leverage,’ and he even named a special type of mineral that his scans had proven existed beneath the surface of my planet. I stared blankly at him, wondering how it was possible that I wouldn’t have known that such a thing existed in my own planet. I looked down into my lap, at my fingers that were spread under the sleeve of my sweater. It was the first time I truly questioned if I was fit for the role of queen.

“Are you even paying attention, your  _ highness?”  _  The man asked, but I could only tilt my eyes up to him. “Yes, I am.” I replied back as snarkily as I could. “You want my planet for its dwindling resources and our warriors, is that correct?” I asked him, it was the gist of what he was trying to say outside of padding his words with exquisite lingo. I watched as his head bobbed up and down slightly before leaning in closer to me. “And with your permission we’ll be taking full control of it; your people, your currency, and yourself.” He said, clasping both of his hands together and leaning forward on the table. I wish I could have seen the look on his face, if he had one. Because it sounded like he wanted me to just sign my planet over along with my citizen’s lives and call it a day.

“You want me to give you my people, for absolutely nothing in return?” I asked, completely appalled. I might not have been the best Queen, but I was the only leader my people had! What would it look like if I simply handed them over, for these evil, robotic people to do gods know what to them? It hardly seemed fair, it was such a one sided agreement that I would never agree to.

“Your reward is being removed from the throne, since you clearly are not fit to run it anyway.”He said, and my breath caught in my chest. I held my breath as he went on to explain how they’d offer me a measly million credits if I went ‘peacefully,’ enough for, in his words, to dethrone myself and make a new life somewhere else. I stood up, I slammed my fists on the table and I yelled at the top of my lungs: “How  _ dare  _ you invade my planet, terrorize my people, and then demand that I abandon them for you to slaughter like animals!” 

The man sat unmoving in front of me, as if my outburst hadn’t shaken him at all. “So you’re a weak leader, and you’re prone to fist slamming temper tantrums when you are challenged.” He spoke, it only made me feel that much smaller. “Your people must be so incompetent to allow themselves to be led by you. It just shows how badly the Order must intervene.” 

“You want to strip me of my power, but also change the lives of my people! We don’t know who you people are, you bring things that we fear and expect us to just bow to you?” I asked him, begging for some kind of understanding. “My ancestors deemed it important to keep the outside world away, we don’t need your intervention, or your technology. Leave us, leave my planet and leave us alone!” I said as sternly as I could, locking eyes with the grill in his helmet. 

“Your greatest fear should not be technology, as much as it should be the destruction of your own people by your hand.” He said, leaning forward and leaning on his hands again. All eyes in the room were on us, my people looked stressed, much more so than the delighted faces that surrounded the man in black. “Haven’t you seen any of them, outside of your safe haven here? Your people are starving, there is no food to feed them. They live in broken down huts because you have no resources to house them, to create safer spaces for them. You are ruling a broken empire, one that you don’t know how to fix.

“It is through no fault of your own, your elderly parents failed to teach you how to properly run a civilization. I know your story, your ‘servants’ sold you out. They’re tired of you too, they just aren’t willing to say it out loud.” I felt the color drain from my face at the accusation, there was no way that was true. Was it? I took a panicked look around the room and found that they were all looking at the ground. Was it a coincidence? It must have been! My people didn’t hate me, I was sure of it.

But this man, this machine sitting across from me, wasn’t helping my insecurities. I let out a stressful sigh as my fingers balled into my skirt, the likes of which still showed off the tan color of my legs and deep green bikini bottom under the near translucent material. He had judged me long before I had even spoken a word to him, and now he was playing my own people against me.

“Just, just what exactly do you want from me?” I asked, once again he straightened his back and sat up straight as if ready to deliver the final blow to my ego. “I’ve told you already. We want your planet.” I closed my eyes, his hurtful words almost did push me into giving in. If it were true that my people were tired of me, if it were true that I was the reason behind their suffering, then maybe it would be best to give up the throne and allow this person to step in.

Almost as soon as the thought left my mind, another took its spot: These people are  _ strangers.  _ They’re outsiders, and my mother and father had always warned me about outsiders and how they were no good for us. That included these people, who bombarded me and my planet and forced their way into my castle. He was manipulating me into giving up, and I would have none of it.

“You won’t be getting a thing from me, outsider.” I spat, standing up from the table and turning to walk back to my bedchamber. “Victor, summon the guards and have them escort these people from the planet.” I commanded, not bothering to turn and gracing the man with one last look. I had just made it to the door, continuing my spunky speech on adding them to our enemy list to kill on the spot when I was stopped in my tracks. 

It felt as if someone's hands were wrapped around my neck, but when I looked down there was nothing there. I opened my mouth to take in air, but none would come in or out. I was choking on nothing, or being choked with something that I couldn’t see, and it would seem no one would help me. Suddenly I was pulled back, soaring over the table where my limp body knocked over several cups that spilled onto what I thought was important paperwork, all the way into the man’s hand that was held out. Just as he had when he seemingly pulled my hangover from my body, he was pulling the life from my body as well. I sat there in his hand struggling, pleading with him to let me go. Behind me Victor was begging him to release me, my people were only just now starting to panic now that he was manually choking me. All I could do was stare into the void space of his eyes, this was exactly why we didn’t welcome outsiders.

“Clearly you do not know who I am, or where I come from.” He spoke, I could hear just the slightest sound of his breathing. Was he human? Obviously he wasn’t human enough to grant me the mercy of breathing when I had denied his cruel offer. He was inhumane enough to snuff out the life of a young girl in front of an audience, he was definitely not the person I would have wanted to do business with, not the kind of person I would entrust my people with. “I am Supreme Leader Kylo Ren of the First Order. We are strong, we are powerful, and you will give into our demands. Either you will peacefully sign ownership of your planet over, or we will take it by force. I’ll be sure to execute every single one of the people you are holding captive right in front of you, I’ll knock your castle to the ground. Then I’ll fly you out into space where I’ll make you watch me blow your planet to smithereens, and I’ll end your reign of terror by sending you out in an airlock.” 

The entire time he spoke his grip on my neck was tightening, I was seeing black blobs in my vision as my body gave up the ghost. It made no sense, why did he list out all of these threats to me only to kill me before acting out on them? I struggled against him either way, reaching up and placing my hands around his much larger wrists to try and stop him, but I was no match for him. I held on for as long as I could, and just when I thought I would surely pass out the man finally showed mercy. His fingers unlatched from my throat and I fell onto the table, flat on my stomach I still flailed my arms and legs while taking in as much air as I could. I lifted my head and looked on in horror as every set of eyes in the room were on me, I sat there completely mortified. 

“So I will ask you again for the last time,  _ Queen, _ ” He spoke to me, once again the invisible hands at my jaw were holding my gaze to him. “Which will it be? Will you allow yourself to walk away peacefully, or will you accept responsibility for the death of the people you claim to care so much about?” I stared into the eye holes, and I thought long and hard about what I was going to say next. This man, this  _ Supreme Leader  _ as Victor had called him, obviously meant business. He was a strong, powerful man and I had no doubt he could bring me and my people harm. I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t want to step down and disappoint my parents beyond the grave, but I also didn’t want to die. I felt like giving into his demands would essentially be giving up, admitting to everyone that ever doubted me, including this man that sat in front of me, that they were right. 

The conflict stirred around inside of me, and I felt like I was placed on the spot and had to make a quick-witted decision that would take any normal person days to consider. It was hardly fair, and unfortunately the reactive side of me took over, the fight in my fight or flight response kicked in and I found myself sitting up, raising my hands in the air and summoning my guards to kick these awful people from my palace. I wasn’t thinking, of course, that these people had cut right through my army and that the man could have enacted his plan right then and there. I watched him stand, I watched him reach to his belt where he pulled some kind of metal cylinder out and hold it in the palm of his hand. I didn’t have very long to admire it, however, because within half a second a long, cackling, red blade appeared before me, wielded by him it sat mere inches away from my face. I gasped, falling back and crawling away as fast as I could as the heat radiated onto me. My fallen warrior's words echoed in my mind: _ One wielded a sword that was red and cackling with fire. _

I closed my eyes, realizing I was no match for him or any one of his people. I had made a rash and very grave decision, but from the sight of him lifting the blade high above his head, ready to strike me down, he wouldn’t have any mercy in ending my life as painfully as he could.

I braced for the impact as best I could, but when I heard someone else cry out in pain, someone that sounded painfully familiar to me, I opened my eyes as quick as I could. The man had turned his back to me, and behind him everyone had made a clearing around one person in particular. He was doubled over in pain, his hand covering his arm as the slightest amount of blood trickled from a wound that appeared to have come from the sword that sat still glowing in his hand.

“Wait, please, Supreme Leader,” he said, and he lifted his head to reveal the one person I didn’t want to see in his place. “Victor!” I shouted, crawling to the end of the table, falling to my feet and wrapping my arms around him. His loyalty to me and my reign knew no bounds, he took a blow for me, his Queen, and he did it without any hesitation. He lifted his eyes to me, a look of boldness and bravery met mine of fear and remorse before he turned back to the man he had challenged. “Please, you must, you must hear my plea.” He said, completely out of breath.

“I gave your Queen her only two options, and she chose to watch her people perish. There are no more pleas” He said, and for some reason his already cold, modulated voice sounded even colder and sinister. “Wait, there must be another option.” He begged, I decided that I could no longer watch him stand in so much pain. I ordered one of my nearby negotiators out of their chair and pulled it up for Victor but he hardly thanked me, instead choosing to continue negotiating for my life. 

“Our Queen, she is young and she has not been adequately trained in her rulings. To destroy our people and our planet just because she is refusing to give up the throne would be a waste, yes?” He asked, and in one swift movement the man brought his sword down to his side. Before touching the ground it retreated into the cylinder from where it came, he straightened his stance as his attention was set on Victor and nothing else. It would seem he thought Victor deserved his attention more than I did, and that was alright with me. 

“Why don’t, why don’t we meet you halfway? Why don’t we come up with a plan that will allow our Queen to grow and flourish in her position? You can train her to be a more fruitful leader, to work our planet out of its suffering and built it into what you want it to be. She would become a valuable asset within the First Order, and you would still have everything our planet would have to offer you.” Victor spoke, lifting his hands in the air as if trying to calm the beast down that stood before him. “Doesn’t that sound like a much better alternative?” 

The man stood still, seemingly taking Victor’s words into careful consideration. From behind him one of his men stood and cleared his throat, addressing him as “Supreme Leader Ren,” to which the man tossed him a look over his shoulder. “It does make sense, Supreme Leader. The General was looking to expand his leadership over a full planet, and this one has everything he would need to rule.” He spoke, my attitude quickly shifted from terrified to skeptical. The  _ General?  _ What did that even mean? “He could train the warriors and prepare them for battle, he’s proven to be an exceptional General and would be the best candidate to help this young girl learn how to rule.” 

“Just what are you suggesting?” I spoke up, feeling my heart beat rapidly in my chest. “You want me to learn from someone who has never ruled a planet before, from someone who has less experience than I do?” I was appalled, that was the most idiotic plan that I have ever heard of. “This man has far more military and political experience than you have ever had in your short life. Now that it’s been brought up, it sounds like an excellent idea.” The man said, turning back toward me. I held my hands in the air toward him and let out a series of ‘woahs’ to try and bring the conversation back to me. “This hardly seems fair! How is someone who’s never ruled a planet, let alone  _ my  _ planet, going to teach me how to be a great ruler?” 

“Well unfortunately for you, nothing about the order is ‘fair.’” He snapped at me, I flinched back in fear. After taking a long, empty look at Victor and I the Supreme Leader turned back toward his men and women that were awaiting his orders. In a strange, sort of twisted way, I admired him. He was clearly an effective leader, his people listened to his every order and respected him. They never spoke back or made him feel like he was a mediocre ruler, like how my maid questioned me in the hall. What was it that he had that I didn't? How much experience did he have over me when I was born into royalty? I felt inadequate, so small next to him. If he were this confident, how confident was this man that was suggested to take over over planet? A small part of me felt relieved, maybe if he were just a General he’d be just as new as I was. He wouldn’t put me to shame, he’d be accommodating and understanding as the two of us learned together.

“It’s something that will be taken into consideration.” He turned his gaze toward Victor instead of me, yet another show of disrespect. I placed my hand on Victor’s shoulders as he nodded his head. There were commands, every one of the Supreme Leader’s people rose from their chairs and filed out of the room, into the hallways of my castle. Before he left, however, he stopped and addressed Victor once again. “We will be in contact.” He said, but Victor hardly had time to respond before he disappeared, leaving me and the people I ruled over all alone.

That same day I accompanied Victor to the small infirmary and stayed by his side as my medical staff tended to his needs. His wound was deep enough that it needed to be flushed, stitched, and bandaged, and I swear I had apologized to him ten thousand times over for making him take a frightening laser sword for me. “Not to worry, my Queen.” He said with a sincere grin. He was shirtless, his well toned muscles shown off for the world to see, a long white bandage over his wound. Minus the bandage, he was just as I remembered him being a while back when I allowed him to make love to me the first time.

I met Victor while we were both being educated, being five years older than me he had just graduated when I was starting, but elected to take a job within the education for the district we lived in. I saw him every day and he tried to make it seem like he wasn’t impressed to be seeing the Princess of his planet as often as he did, and I thought he was alright. He’d tutor me, he’d help me with my homework, and when I graduated we were finally allowed to hang out outside of school. 

My dying parents organized a graduation party for me and I begged them to invite Victor. We partied all night long, I abandoned Aurine that night to make out with him on the far side of the castle. I was sure it was the little bit of alcohol I had consumed that evening, but I didn’t regret it at all. Later on that night, after everyone had left I snuck him into my bedchamber and allowed him to take my virginity. It was the best night of my life, and ever since then Victor and I have always been so close.

After my mother died and I realized I would be taking over the throne sooner than I thought, I appointed him into the position he has today, and moved him into the castle with me. He stayed by my side and the two of us shared intimate moments with one another on more than one occasion. It wasn’t until after my father died that I asked him if he wanted to marry me, to rule by my side as the king. I’ll never forget the look of awkwardness as he held my hand and squeezed before quietly declining. I was young, I was naive, and I thought he was telling me that he didn’t want to be with me. It wasn’t until today that I realized it was for a much different reason.

“Are you sure you don’t want to just marry me and save me from all of this? I asked, reaching up and running my hand down his face. It had been so long since we had sex, tensions had been high in the castle for the last two months and he had been rejecting my advances. It hurt, to think my careless rulings had pushed one of my only friends away, but it was evident today that Victor would always be around to take care of me. 

“Afraid not, my Queen.” He said, resting his hand over mine and gently rubbing my knuckles. “There’s no way I’d be able to handle your kind of responsibility.” We both chuckled softly at his honesty, but it still upset me to think he’d leave the care of our planet in a total strangers hands rather than his own. I couldn’t force him, I could only respect his decision. “However, I know that whatever decision is made, you’ll come out strong.” He said, dropping his hand from my face. “We’re your people, my Queen. We know you have our best interests in mind, even if you have no resources to help you rule. We know you’ll take care of us.” He said, and he had immediately succeeded in bringing tears to my eyes. There was one burning question on my mind, however, a thought that I just couldn’t shake. What was their plan of action, would they really allow me to simply rule under him?


	3. Chapter 3

Days past, and no one had heard from the First Order. My people were terrified, they came from across the planet to voice their concerns to me, but I had no answers for them. They asked why I allowed outsiders to enter the planet and kill several of our warriors, they acted like it was all my fault and blamed me for everything. I was mortified, and I didn’t know how to handle it. I looked down from my balcony at their angry and expectant faces, they were screaming in terror, forming crowds around my castle and shouting over my every explanation. Eventually, it got to be too much. The man’s words from earlier that week mixed with my people’s blatant anger and I was feeling much worse than when they first started gathering around my castle. 

I dashed through the halls of my castle, clad in a navy blue dress and my gold barefoot sandals I did my best to hide my shameful emotions from my staff. I sped past maids carrying stacks of towels for the bathrooms, cooking assistants beginning to get mid-day meals delivered to my workers, and other staff simply milling about. Half of them didn’t even bother to look at me, the ones that did just stared at me like I was a three headed alien and no one stopped to ask if their Queen was alright. Once I got back to my bedchamber I slammed the doors behind me, ran all the way to my bed and collapsed into a helpless fit of tears. I couldn’t get the soulless look of the man, the Supreme Leader, out of my mind. Him telling me that my people were suffering and that I needed to step down if I wanted to do what’s right. I tried to tell myself it wasn’t true, but the reaction of my own people told me otherwise. 

I curled up onto my side, wiped my face with my covers just as there was a knock on the door. I gasped, sat up and once again ran my hands over my face, trying to fix myself so that no one knew that their Queen was having a meltdown n. “Come in!” I shouted, and soon the doors were opening and my mid-day meal was being presented to me.

“Afternoon, my Queen.” The head chef smiled as he carted my plates in. Today was smoked boar, caught and killed that morning for my staff to eat fresh. I sat up straight and watched as the chef prepared my plate right in front of me, cutting into the cooked meat, dressing it with the handmade sauce and adding the fresh veggies grown from the garden out behind the castle. It looked delicious, but I didn’t feel like I could eat. “Eat well, my Queen.” The chef said, but before he could see himself out I stopped him, stood to my feet from my bed and approached him as boldly as I could.

“Be truthful," I began, curling my fists in my dress. I knew I was taking a huge risk asking such a question, but I simply needed to know, I needed my conscious to be cleared and this was the only way to do it. "Who in this castle do you respect more for their work: myself or sir Victor of negotiations?” I squint my eyes at him as I not so patiently awaited his response, he seemed to grow nervous under my gaze.

“You, of course, my Queen.” He said, forcing a shaky smile onto his lips. He took ahold of his cart once again and tried to shuffle out o the door, but I could see right through him.

“You are full of lies!” I screamed at him. “Get out of my bedchamber!” I demanded at the top of my lungs, but he still couldn’t leave fast enough. I ran after him, his cart had just barely made it out of the doors before I slammed them behind him. He didn’t even respect me enough to tell the truth, to tell me he favored Victor of me. I closed my eyes as I sat down at the small table, my food steaming in front of me and rousing my empty stomach. By all means, the food looked appetizing and I should have eaten it, but the thoughts of the angry people outside of my castle prevented me from doing so. My mind wandered once again to what a terrible leader I was, how was it that I was able to eat this extravagant food, but from the view of the emaciated people outside of my castle, they couldn't eat just as well? I looked to my window, wishing I could go outside and have my meal. We on Ellone were very in touch with nature, we hardly wore any clothes and, unless we were venturing into the thicker parts of the forest, we almost never wore shoes. I turned toward my plate again, maybe if I sat in the greenhouse gardens and had my meal it would make me feel better. I couldn’t eat outside due to my fear of being attacked by my own people, but if I ate in the greenhouse at least some of the plants could conceal me. I quickly packed up my meal, placed the cover over top of it and headed straight toward my door, the hope that the fresh air would help clear my head strong on my shoulders.

I kept my head held high, passing by many of my workers I kept to myself. That was, until I saw someone I had never seen before roaming the halls. 

He stuck out like a sore thumb: pasty white skin, bright blue eyes, thick, all black outfit, and something I had never seen before: bright orange hair. He contrasted me and my people so much, we typically had darker skin and darker hair which helped us adapt to the climate and sun on our planet. This man must have been from the Order, a new face surrounded by people in all black meant he definitely was not from Ellone. 

His eyes swept the palace halls until they landed on me. He looked prideful and happy, but once he saw me carrying my tray of food his face fell into a nasty scowl. I stopped in my tracks as I wondered if this was the man that held the meeting, his face finally shown he was ready to come enact his plan. I was petrified, I couldn’t move and the small crowd seemed to be approaching faster and faster. I gripped my tray as the memory of the crackling red sword of fire rushed back to me, he was back and he was here to take my life.

“This servant has obviously taking a liking to me.” He said, sounding quite smug. “Little rude girl, hasn’t stopped staring at me just like the rest of them.” I blinked at his harsh words. Servant? I wasn’t a servant! Didn’t he remember me from the meeting, I was their Queen! They finally got close enough to me that they were invading my personal space, the man with red hair towered over me. “Well, go on servant. Deliver your food and quit standing in my way.” He mocked me, him and his people all laughed at me.

“W-What?” I asked, muttering in response to their cruelty. “I’m, I’m not a--” Suddenly a loud crash replaced the humdrum noises of the castle around me. I stood there stunned as the clattering from my meal topper echoed throughout the hallway, breaking glass followed as did the scent of my food becoming tainted on the floor. He had knocked my food out of my hands and to the floor, just like a cruel tyrant from any other planet would. 

“How dare you talk back to your new King, servant.” He said, curling his upper lip up in an ugly snarl. “You work for me, in my home. Now you’re going to get on your knees and clean this mess that you made up on my floor.” He kicked the metal top at me and I was just able to doge the impact. Right after the shock of his awful treatment set in it finally dawned on me: He was an outsider, he had no right to come into my home, claim kingship and treat me like this!

“King, you say?” I retorted, stepping over my wasted food and into his comfort zone. 

“Step back, servent. Do not make my first Kingly duty be to backhand an unruly maid.” I narrowed my eyes at him and bared my teeth, almost ready to swing my fist and make him regret every single word that came from his mouth.

“You do not stand before a servant, you stand before your  _ Queen.” _ I corrected him, but was shocked to find that all he did was scoff in my face. 

“A Queen? Somehow I doubt that. You’re dressed like a whore and carrying food. A Queen would cover herself, a Queen would not be delivering food to anyone.” He squint his eyes at me before taking me by the front of my dress, an action that I had never encountered before in my life. No one had ever been brazen enough to defy my as this man, and after he was done spewing this fairy tales of him becoming a king I was sure to have my guards kick him from my planet. “Now run along, whore.” He said, before twisting his body and throwing me to the floor. I was astonished, never mind the fact that my dress was now ruined, but he had manhandled me, and from his speech he would have no qualms about doing it to people he deemed as servants as well. “I have more important duties than to entertain you silly little maids.” He said, turning away. 

I began twisting and turning, trying to make it to my feet so I could summon my guards properly, but found that someone was helping me up during my time of need. I craned my neck and saw none other than Victor, rushed to my side and throwing his hands under my armpits to lift me. “My King!” He called out, now I really did think there was something amiss, something that I was not kept in the loop about. The cruel man turned around and smiled happily at Victor, heading our way once again.

“Ah, sir Victor. Good to see you again.” He greeted him happily. “Wasting your time tending to useless servants? I’ve already punished her, don’t you worry.” The man said, refusing to look me in the eye. 

“Victor, tell this outsider scum to retreat from my home! I will not stand to hear his delusional speech any longer!” I demanded, turning and facing away from him while smoothing out my dress. Victor took ahold of my shoulders and forcibly turned me to face my assailant, giggling nervously as he went. 

“My, my Queen,” He stuttered, squeezing my shoulders as reassuringly as he possibly could. “I guess no one has introduced you to our new leader.” He said, I felt my heart come to a painful stop in my chest. “My Queen, meet the new King of Ellone, Armitage Hux, General of the First Order.” My brows knit at the center of my forehead and I realized I was mirroring the look of the man in front of me, Armitage Hux, the new  _ King  _ of my planet. “My King, meet, meet your Queen…” He said before nervously rattling off my name to him. 

“Ah, so the clumsy girl was being truthful.” He said, taking a step up to me. His hands were tucked rigidly behind his back as he eyed me from the top of my hair to the tips of my toes. He looked disgusted, but it would seem he had gained a new found respect for me, after Victor introduced us properly of course. It didn’t hit me that Victor introduced him as the King until now.

I turned to Victor in defiance as my words spilled from my lips, so fast in fact I didn’t think of how any of them would react: “What do you mean this man is the new King? I’ve never even met him before.” I snapped, Victor cringed and behind me and I heard the man, Armitage Hux, sigh once again.

“You mean to tell me that you’re the Queen of this planet, yet you can’t even be bothered to stay informed about your planets welfare?” He said, once again disrespectfully placing his hand upon my shoulder and spinning me around to face him. 

“My King, please!” Victor said, stepping in between us and pushing me away. “I was going to inform her this afternoon, please, there’s no reason for this bickering.” Victor said, letting out a loose, nervous laugh. He turned to look at me, but I looked over his shoulder at Hux who was still glaring at me. Hux raised his hand in the air and snapped his fingers and turned around. 

“Well then I trust your judgement.” He said, and with one last dirty look at us over his shoulder him and his posse began stepping down the hall, to explore my castle just as he wanted to. I was shaking as I turned back toward Victor and loudly demanded an explanation.

“My Queen, come. Let’s go talk it over in my office. I’ll have a new plate of food ordered for you.” He said, once again taking me by my shoulders and ushering me in the opposite direction Hux and his goons had gone. I was livid, and was hoping I could keep my composure and not waste my anger on Victor when I knew the real people behind this travesty were none other than the First Order.

 

\--

 

Victor calmly explained the entire situation, and I had never felt more betrayed in my entire life. When he was finished his explanation I stared at him, feeling as if this was one big joke and the rug would be pulled out from under me at the last minute, one final blow that would bring this all to a halt. Something that would snap me back to reality where everything would go back to normal. I wanted the last few days to be nothing but a misshapen nightmare, but as Victor went onto explain I realized there was a very little chance of that being true.

“And so, when the Order contacted us a few days ago with their proposal, we complied. If we became allies of the Order they would spare us, they would take what we had to offer and they would provide you with the training you need to succeed in working with them as one of their rulers.” He said, forcing a smile onto his face. I was not amused, however. I kept my arms crossed and the scowl plain as day. 

“And when were you planning on telling me this?” I asked as blatantly as possible. According to Victor these negotiations took place days ago.

“Ah, well,” He began, running his hands through his course black hair. I bit the inside of my cheek as I imagined how it used to feel, running between my fingers as his face was between my legs. I had been so stressed that I would give anything to be with Victor one more time, but I was sure Victor would deny me. I could feel the sexual frustration building up inside of me once again, but not was not the time to be focusing on such things. 

“You see, my Queen. I wasn’t aware that the General would be making his way to Ellone so soon. In fact, I never even got to relay your wishes to the Order before he showed up claiming his territory.” I cocked a brow at him, wondering if he or anyone else in this equation even bothered to ask my opinion on the matter. The last time this was brought up there was a threat to my wellbeing and Victor only suggested I rule under one of their people, but now all of the sudden everything was set in stone? This hardly seemed fair, but just as we learned we were no match for them.

“It would seem I don’t really have a choice.” I said, leaning onto his desk with my chin in my palm. “We have what they want, and if we don’t willingly give it up they’ll destroy us.” I said, sighing heavily. I looked up to Victor who was looking down at me with a look of pity, like even he didn’t want to be going with this plan but we all truly had no choice. 

“I’m sorry, my Queen. But there is something else we must discuss.” I blew some of my hair out of my face and dropped my head into my arms, thinking there could be nothing he could say that would top one of the most awful days in power.  I figured he was going to say the man would be rooming in the castle and I would be subjected to his wrath in close proximity for the rest of my time in ruling, but no. It was something much worse than that.

“Everyone within negotiations thought long and hard about this deal, we feel it would be in the best interest for you, for us, and for the people that we take the deal and allow this man to teach you how to rule, but we wanted to come up with some guidelines and parameters that would keep all of us safe, should anything go bad within the agreement.” He said, I picked my head up and eyed him suspiciously. A nervous scowl decorated his face as he reached over and placed a folder in front of me. “My Queen, I need you to listen to me closely. I’m sure you will be shocked when you hear this, but just remember you’re doing it for the people.” He said with a nervous sigh. He pushed the folder toward me, it was blank and it seemed to contain an entire novel worth of paper.

“What is all this?” I asked, opening the folder and squinting at the mass of text that greeted me. The first line read ‘Joint Ruling Agreement’ and was followed by several other pages. I leafed through them, big, intimidating words followed. Clauses, contracts, and so on. All the words made my head spin, and I didn’t get any clarity until Victor gently took the packet from my hand and flipped to the last page. 

“This, is what you need to sign to place everything into motion. Once you sign upon this line the General will be able to start his ruling over our people. He’s agreed to train you under our parameters, he’s agreed to allow you to keep your position as Queen, and we only had one condition.” He said, trailing off as he placed the last page in front of me. I read over the very first line and my jaw fell to the floor:

 

_ Arranged Marriage Clause _

 

Underneath of it listed the name and title  _ Armitage Hux of the First Order, King of Ellone,  _ next to it read my full name along with my title, but my last name had been replaced with that of “Hux.” I gasped as I took in the rest of the document, how it explained we would be sharing our power in our marriage and how the funds my planet raised would no longer belong to just me, but to him as well. “V-Victor!” I mumbled, slamming my hands on the desk in disbelief. “Nobody told me that I would have to  _ marry  _ that man! Didn’t you see the way he treated me in the hall just now? I can’t marry him!” I cried out, feeling an awful pit in my stomach growing. No one told me I would have to marry whomever came onto my planet to rule, that I would have to share my assets and even my home with them. This was absurd, and as I wordlessly begged Victor to tell me this was some kind of cruel joke I was only met with a stressed look of concern.

“My Queen, it was the only way we could ensure your safety and ours. The Order wanted to come in and just take the power from you, if the two of you married then your leadership would be protected, it would be ideal for all of us, you just have to--”

“How come these arrangements were made without my consent?!” I asked, pointing at the date under the clause title. It was yesterday's date, and judging by the sharp, rigid, and nearly illegible signature that sat atop the line labeled “King Armitage Hux,” it would seem that these plans had been set in motion for a while now. At least, this man Hux agreed to everything without even hearing my concerns. 

“You haven’t consented to them yet, My Queen. You still have to sign your marriage certificate and then you would be consenting.” Victor said, pushing the packet closer toward me and pointing to the blank line that had my name, once again my last name was replaced with that of ‘Hux.’ “But, I’m afraid that the Order has already taken the initiative. If you don’t sign the certificate now then that will only leave you open to more trouble later on.” I stared at him blankly, this could not be real. 

After a moment of silence passed, my eyes welled with tears and it hit me, it finally hit me with 100 percent certainty: I was not my planets ruler. Or rather, I was not the ruler they needed. The rulers my planet needed was the team that assembled this contract, the ones that successfully negotiated with the First Order and came up with a way to keep me, a simple minded puppet, safe from harm. A Queen would have been known about every step it took to get here, she would have agreed to everything if it meant her people would be safe instead of whining about not wanting to do anything. The real leaders of my planet had recognized the danger that was posed right away, and they came up with a reasonable way to fix it. I was only a tool in their belt, and at the moment I was hindering all of their progress.

It hurt. It hurt more than when I lost my parents, and it hurt more than the loneliness that existed in my chest at all hours of the day. The realization struck me like a venomous snake in the dead of night, and the pain radiated throughout my body like its venom. I could feel myself shaking as the vision of Victor blurred to an indistinguishable group of black and brown colors, and I didn’t look away until I felt him grab my hand. “I know it’s a difficult decision.” He spoke, sending shockwaves of emotion soaring through my body. “I know you don’t think as highly of yourself as you should, my Queen, but by signing this document you would become the leader you’re meant to be. You would be making every one of your citizens proud of you, you would be bringing them the aid that they need.” 

The room was filled with my sobs before he placed the pen in my hand. I stopped and stared at it for just a second, quieting my sobs and looking back at the contract. This was it, this would be the moment of my life that would truly define who I was. The line was blank, waiting for me to accept my new position, waiting for me to renounce my old ways and allow someone, an outsider, to teach me something new. To teach me what was best for my own people, someone that had only seen so much and someone that had already proven to be so cruel to those he preceived to be less than he was.

“Are, are you sure there’s no other way to fix this?” I asked, whining like I knew I shouldn’t have been. “Surely there must be some other way. I can’t, I can’t just trust my life and well being to a stranger. My parents--”

“Sometimes, my Queen,” Victor cut in, pressing the tip of my pen down onto the blank line above my newfound name. “It is necessary to change the past, to leave it behind you and start something new. What we have isn’t working, and what the First Order has proposed will work. We just have to trust them, trust that they will protect us from harm.” He said, sounding sincere as he ever had. I trusted him, but I had always been told not to trust outsiders. 

“We don’t have any harm to be protected from, we were just fine without them.” I noted, but Victor could only let out a frustrated sigh.

“My Queen, you always have been my number one priority. Even when we were younger, when we didn’t understand each other and when we grew closer than we should have, you were always the most important thing to me.” He said, his eyes sparkling with tears of his own. “I know that you’re stronger than you think you are, I know that you can be a great Queen, and I would never do anything to inhibit that.” Victor clasped his hand over mine, running his thumb protectively over my knuckles and stirring up old feelings inside of me that should have been laid to rest. “You must trust me, trust that, throughout every step of this new journey you’re going on, that I will keep you safe from harm.” He said, his voice thick with just as much emotion as I had. I closed my eyes as he lifted his hand from mine, and realized that I truly had no choice.

I swallowed a wad of saliva, as I pressed the pen into the paper and began imprinting my script I signed my life away to this man, Hux. Victor had made it clear that I do not have to fully trust the First Order, but I did have to trust him. And trust him I did. He took the paper and filed it back into the folder, placed it on his desk and reached for my hand to help me up from the chair. I was a mess, my soul in shambles I just couldn’t reason with myself that I had made the right decision. 

I was numb as Victor led me from his office, throughout the halls to his bedchamber, where he stripped me from what little clothing I had on and “celebrated” this new life altering decision I had made. The two of us made love, him doing most of the work as I pondered; what exactly were my ancestors thinking as they watched me marry a complete stranger? Someone that they had worked to hard in the past to protect me from. 


	4. Chapter 4

I sat outside the steps that led down to a leafy, stone passage which, when followed, led to the castle gardens. As a child it was often one of my favorite places to be, my dad used to lead me down these same steps, through the foliage to the quiet bed of flowers, numerous fruit trees and bushes, and the large vegetable garden plot. He would carry a basket and we would gather as many fresh fruits and vegetables as we could find, pile them all into his basket and head to the kitchen to deliver them to our staff. Dad was always so slow, with my hands full of as much produce as my little arms could hold I would always tell him to hurry and he would just smile and remind me to be patient. 

But I couldn’t, because the kitchen staff used to enjoy seeing me run in to help them. They used to smile as I would burst through the doors, announcing loudly that we brought them food to cook for everyone. They would turn and smile, at least one chef would stop what they were doing to take the fruits and veggies from my hands and the basket from dads, and there would always be one person who said the same thing: 

“My king, don’t feel like you have to do the gardener's job.” They would say with a sympathetic smile adorning their face. “Spend time with your daughter, don’t worry about fetching food for us to cook!” I was so young and I didn’t understand why they would tell us not to spend time in the garden. It was always one of my favorite experiences. My dad could only laugh, watching them through his old, weathered eyes as they would take his basket and place it into the sink, allowing the warm water to wash the dirt and imperfections away from the fruits of our shared labor. 

“I do spend time with her, pulling the vegetables from the ground, taking the time to teach her about what she eats and most importantly humbling her.” He didn’t often give the staff this talk, but when he did he would always reach down and ruffle my hair, and looking back I realized he was thinking of how proud he was of me and my love for helping others. “One day I won’t be around, and one day she may not have you to care for her. My only hope is that I can teach her to mind herself and to mind others, because life can be unfair.” He would say, before reaching for my hand and leading me away from the kitchen, off to some other part of the castle where we would continue our shared time together until something of political importance would draw his attention away from me, his only daughter.

 

“Dad used to tell me life was unfair, and I never believed him, until now, I guess.” I said, reaching for a small, browned crispy leaf that had blown to my feet. Here I sat next to Aurine, my best friend as she threw me nothing but looks of sympathy as I went on and on about my problems. 

“Well we never really had any worries growing up, so that’s understandable.” She said, a weak attempt to make me feel better which didn’t really work. Aurine’s family worked for mine for the longest time, she and her husband lived only a few minutes from the castle in one of the richer neighborhoods. Her husband Vekis came from a family of farmers and currently ran the most successful rice mill on our planet, one that grows, packages and delivers rice to nearly every store on Ellone. It’s only about an hour long way away with transport, walking would take all day. But he still decided to move in with Aurine and stay close to me, to only visit the factory once a week. And for that I was truly thankful, because I needed Aurine now more than I ever have. 

“What’s he like?” She asked me, referring to my now husband Armitage Hux. 

“I don’t know. He’s an outsider, he doesn’t look like us.” I said, wrapping my arms around my knees and staring down the stone pathway. I hadn’t seen him since our first meeting yesterday, I could only imagine he was stomping around terrorizing my staff just as he did with me. My stomach churned as I ran through the interaction we shared in my head, I couldn’t bring myself to tell Aurine that he had abused me thinking I was only a maid.

“Well, is he human? Or does he have like extra arms and legs and all that?” Aurine asked, giggling like a giddy little school girl. She was trying to perk me up, but I still just wasn’t feeling it.

“Yeah, he’s human. He’s got hair like fire and skin like snow.” I said, turning toward her and grinning for the first time since yesterday. “He won’t survive here much longer, the sun will leave his skin charred like Old Mister Lake’s house on the beach a few summers ago.” I said, this time both of us shared a laugh. Watching the beach house burn down was terrifying, it was windy and it had picked up embers from a bonfire a few miles down the beach. The house went up into flames and nothing was salvageable, but our people came together to make sure Old Mister Lake was well taken care of until we could build him a new house. Of course, with a severe lack of resources it was difficult and it wasn’t as big as his previous one, but nevertheless we made sure he was well taken care of.

Just like when we were girls we were thrown into a jovial laughing fit, I described the way my husband looked, talked, and acted and how I thought his mannerisms would be. I mocked him in a childish tone, crossed my eyes and spoke about how I was the big bad General whose come here to industrialize the planet, talked about how I didn’t know what I was talking about and about how I was going to destroy the planet when there was a loud crash behind us. Aurine and I both turned around to find none other than Armitage Hux standing there stiffly, two of his goons standing close behind him. At his feet sat a shattered glass, clear fluid stained the steps around it. Next to him stood one of my maids, terrified beyond belief as she held a tray containing a meal with one key element missing: A glass of water. 

“Just what is going on here?” He asked, yelling above the already absolute silence that existed around us. His eyes shot between myself and Aurine, but before I was able to answer him Aurine spoke and I wasn’t able to stop her. 

“Red hair, this must be your husband?” She asked, looking to me and speaking like a snob. Her lip curled as if she were disgusted with the man, and it only made my heart pound faster in my chest. “A man that has to smash and break things to get a woman’s attention, how sad.”

“Would you look at this, my  _ wife  _ mingling about with yet another whore.” He said, glaring less at me and more at Aurine. “What is with you women and your disdain for proper clothing? How can you walk around with all of your assets shown off like this?” He was, of course, talking about our shorts that came up to the tops of our thighs and our thin white shirts that cut off right below our breasts. People often mistook Aurine and I for twins, whenever we were together we would always try to match, it was something we had always done and something we weren’t planning on stopping. If it weren’t for her taller height and smaller chest, we would look nearly identical.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed this,  _ King Carrot top,  _ but here on Ellone the temperatures get hot. When not in the shade of the trees the sun can poison you, dressing in this horrible heavy black clothing will be the death of you.” Aurine stood, stepping dangerously close to Hux that it made both me and my maid uncomfortable. Mid sentence I jumped up behind her to try and pull her away, but it would seem I was too late. Hux, my husband, seized my best friend by the jaw and began pushing her down the steps. I gasped, followed closely behind them as I tried to free her from his grasp, but one of his goons quickly pulled me away and held me back.

Before my very eyes I watched as he nonchalantly pushed Aurine over to the nearby fountain, backed her up to the curb, and pushed her in. We both screamed at the same time, our shrieks were drowned out by the sound of her frantically splashing to free herself from the water. A crooked, evil grin grew over his face as he watched her work herself onto your hands and knees, and by the time she was sitting up, soaked head to toe looking at him, he took it upon himself to make yet another snide, unneeded comment.

“Have this little wrech removed from my home. See to it that she’s never allowed back on the premises.” He said, walking away while his guards let go of me and walked over to her. 

I was appalled, he had the audacity to come into my home, assault my friend, and then ban her from my home? This was absurd, and I sure wasn’t going to keep my mouth shut this time.

“Just who do you think you are? What gives you the right to do such cruel things to my people?” I screamed at him right as Aurine had climbed out of the fountain. He stopped, looked me up and down before sneering at me just as he did the last time we met.

“How many times must I say it to get through your thick skull, woman?” He asked, bending down and getting close--too close--to me. I could smell his clean toothpaste and minty aftershave, something only the rich people on Ellone got to use, clear as day. “I am your King, and even though those documents state that we rule together,  _ I  _ am the one in control. You are just a puppet, someone that will give the illusion of familiarity to these people while I overhaul everything you’ve done to ruin this planet.” He said, squinting his eyes and taking a dramatic step around me. As he walked off his guards pulled Aurine from the fountain and began marching her up the steps. Although I was speechless and quaking in fear, I managed to stumble and mumble my way about to them, successfully convince them to allow me to escort Aurine off the castle grounds and to get them to leave us alone.

“I pity you.” Aurine whispered to me as I wrapped my arms around her and led her back to the castle. “The only thing he has going for him is his good looks. But they are over run by an ugly personality.” She said, and I couldn’t agree with her more.

 

Aurine and I stayed cooped up in my bedchamber for the remainder of the day until Vekis arrived to escort her home. I worried endlessly about the wet footprints she would have left throughout the back hallways, worried that Hux would have followed us here and would have pushed her out the window. But the only people who came knocking on my doors were Vekis and Victor, both bursting in like our personal super heros. Aurine and I were totally relieved.

“Thank goodness it’s you!” I said, jumping up in succession with Aurine and rushing over to the men. Aurine found herself in Vekis’s arms, kissing him passionately as if she hadn’t seen him in years. 

“The new king is so cruel, he has no respect for our people.” She wailed, but Vekis only shushed her. 

“What else do you expect from an outsider?” He said, glaring at me while wrapping his arms around her head. I felt my cheeks warm in shame as I looked to the ground, wishing Victor would hold me the same. But he didn’t, he just awkwardly stood off to the side as Vekis held his wife tight. For some odd reason, I felt I would never feel the same. Aurine was married to a man that loved and cared for her, meanwhile I was married to a man that called me a whore for dressing according to my planet’s climate. It made me uneasy, and it made me realize how lucky Aurine truly was. 

Vekis looked away from me and sighed, taking in the scent of Aurines nearly dry hair. It was clear he didn’t approve of the decisions that were made for me regarding the Order, but I had known Vekis for a while and Aurine told me he trusted me, but his look of betrayal didn’t hurt any less. 

“Come my love, let’s go home. At least there this new King cannot bother us.” He said, and without another word, no goodbye, no good luck, both Aurine and Vekis disappeared from my room.

I watched as the doors shut behind them, and even though Victor was there with me I felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness. I had seen the most important person among my group of friends disrespected and hauled out of my castle due to circumstances I couldn’t control, and I knew I had driven both her and her husband further away from me. 

“How are you today, my Queen?” Victor asked, his shoes clicking loudly against the stone of my bedchamber. I looked up at him from my bed, after wandering over and slouching in my dismay. He had a hopeful grin upon his handsome face, but even his good looks couldn’t bring my spirits up. “Are you feeling any better from yesterday?” He asked, clasping his hands in front of him.

“No, not really.” I muttered, sighing and running my hands through my hair. “I saw him again today, and was just as much of an asshole as he was the first time we met.” I said as matter of factly as I could. Victor’s smile faded fast as I spoke about the interaction, it only put me off even more.

“Well, Aurine does have quite the mouth on her, doesn’t she?” He said with a forced laugh. Shifting the blame onto Aurine was the wrong thing to do, and at any other point I would have left Victor with an earful. But not today, because my day had been ruined as soon as the glass Hux knocked over shattered onto the stone below him. 

Victor cleared his throat, looking around nervously once again. “Ah, well, My Queen. I am here for a very specific reason.” He said, moving over to my closet where he began to rummage through my clothing.

“What is this about?” I asked, furrowing my brows at him from across the room. From within my closet he pulled out an old bag, one that I used when traveling across my planet. I haven’t done a lot of traveling recently and when I did I usually didn’t have a say in doing so. It would seem like this was the case, but I would find out it would be for much different reasons than I anticipated.

“I’ve been given orders by Supreme Leader Kylo Ren to have you packed and ready to have a visit to the Finalizer.” He said, dropping one of my gowns into my bag. At this point he refused to look me in the eye, instead turning toward my closet again and grabbing for one of my light flowy skirts to drop into my bag. A gasp escaped my lips as I shot to my feet, my heart stopped in my chest as I went over every single word in the sentence. The  _ Finalizer?  _ What was a Finalizer?

“What in heaven’s name is that?” I shouted but Victor only coolly continued to pack my bag, moving over to my dresser where he began pulling out my underwear. 

Looking down at my white panties he huffed, running his fingers over the silk as if he were recalling some of the memories we had created together. On more than one occasion I had sent him away with a pair of my used panties to pleasure himself with only to find them clean and pristine sitting on my pillow two days later. Things had definitely changed, and now that I was getting married I wasn’t sure they would go back to the way they had been.

“It’s King Hux’s ship.” Victor said, spinning around and dropping my panties in the bag. He had a scowl on his face, as if by dropping my underwear he was renouncing me for life. It was upsetting, left me feeling even emptier than I already was. “He’s leaving it to orbit in the atmosphere about Ellone, but the Supreme Leader is requesting your wedding ceremony be held on their territory since the King isn’t giving up his current position in the Order.” Victor said in a very monotone voice. Clearly he was just as amused as I was, and the subject wasn’t amusing at all.

“A  _ ceremony _ ? The man calls me a whore every time he sees me, and we have to have a wedding ceremony?” I crossed my arms, sauntering over to him but he pays me no attention. Instead he simply packs me more bras and more underwear, refusing to even look at me. His silence bothered me even more than his words, and I found a question burning in my mind. It was the only way I would be able to get the closure I needed, and with all the changes I would be experiencing in the near future it would be the least Victor could do to help me cope.

I whispered Victor’s name, successfully drawing his attention to me from the floor. “What do you think about this? Is this something that you’re okay with happening?” I asked, but I got no response. Sadly I watched as he turned back toward my dresser and pulled out another bra and let it fall wistfully to the bag.

“That is out of my jurisdiction, my Queen.” He spoke, and once again there was silence. My soul had shattered, it felt like this nonconsensual wedding ceremony was severing yet another bond that I held near and dear to my heart. I sat back down on the bed where I busied myself with twiddling with the hem of one of my decorative pillows, hiding my face from Victor so that I could shed my tears in peace. My life was spiraling out what little control I had over it beforehand, and clearly no one was willing to hold my hand along the way.

 

The next morning I was awoken by my staff, the moon still shone into my bedchamber so I knew it was either late at night or very early in the morning. I forced my eyes open as my maids prepared my clothes for the day, bidding me good morning in the meantime. They all carried sad, forced smiles as they stared at me in pity, I couldn’t imagine what was going on. “What’s all this?” I asked, leaning up while my maids began to undress me. 

“We are preparing you for your flight to the big ship in the sky, my Queen.” One of them said, to which I woke right up. I sat topless in front of them, only having them push on my back to stand me straight up. This was all new to me, I had never woken up this early for anything in my life and I didn’t think I was going to be going to the Finalizer mere hours after being told about my ceremony. 

“What? This morning?” I asked, the maids only nodded their heads in reply, squatting down to remove my sleeping pants and underwear. 

“Come my Queen, let us bathe you. We must make a wonderful impression on our new Leaders!” My maid said, taking me by my arm and leading me toward the attached bathroom. It wasn’t as if this was the first bath I had been given by hand, this was all natural to me. What wasn’t natural was the false happiness they showed, the forced smiles as they helped lower me into the tub. They seemed  _ happier  _ this time around, every other time they had bathed me and helped me ready for the day they seemed so distant, so uninterested. Now they seemed happier, as if they wanted me off the planet for this short period of time.

I tried my best to relax as the maids took their time in washing my hair and my body, adding lavender leaves to my bath to relax and calm me, running the homemade shampoo through my hair that smelled of sweet honey and milk, dousing my dark blue washcloth with the hand churned soap and running it over every inch of my body. At any other point in time this would be a relaxing activity, but right then and there I realized that, yet again, this was another first. 

As my fingers turned to prunes under the water I felt a wave of nausea hit me: This would be the first time leaving Ellone. I looked up as my maids reached into the water and pulled the plug, the water beginning to drain while I thought of what a disgrace I was to my ancestors. I had been told time after time after time to never leave the planet, never accept help from outsiders, and never allow outsiders onto our soil. Now here I was, the Queen who was already a laughing stock going against everything my people had ever been told. What kind of leader was I truly? What kind of person was I making myself out to be in front of my own people?

What would they think of me when the news was broken that their Queen, my pure Ellone native blood, was being combined with an outsiders? 

I bit back my tears while my maids dried me, looking them in their uninterested eyes and trying to see what they thought of me. Was I coward in their eyes? A cop-out? Dare I say it, a  _ traitor?  _ One single tear escaped down my cheek as the treacherous word sawed through my conscious, but the maids did nothing. They simply rubbed the oil into my brown skin to soften me, then sprinkled just a bit of fruit extract on top to make me smell good. They didn’t seem to care. But who would? My own people didn’t care that I was being booted off of our planet for some time. Once again, I was alone.

Upon entering my bedroom I was faced with something I had never in my life seen before: A shirt with long sleeves that would have gone down to my wrist and pants that would have gone down to my ankles. I was confused, didn’t even know I owned clothing that looked like this. It was akin to what Hux was wearing when I saw him, none of his skin was showing and I was sure he was massively overheated. One of my maids picked up the shirt while another stepped behind me to put my bra on, she expected me to lift my arms submissively so that she could clothe me, but I refused. “Why would I wear a shirt like this?” I asked as blatantly as I could. “I am not my husband, I refuse to walk around in hot clothing. The Ellone sun will eat me alive!”

“Oh, my Queen.” The maid said, squatting and holding my panties out for me to step into. “Have you forgotten already? You aren’t staying on Ellone. You’re going some place much colder.” She reminded me as she pulled my panties up over my hips. 

“Colder? What do you mean?” I asked, sure I had learned about colder climates in school but it was always something I chose not to pay attention to. Ellone was made up of mostly jungle, with islands scattered about and one desert off in the eastern portion of the planet, why would I have to worry about being cold? 

My maid only laughed at me as she bunched the shirt in her hands and threw it over my head anyway. “Where you’re going, there is no sun. Sir Victor has told us that you’re going to be spending some time on a ship, where you’ll marry an outsider man. He says it is cold, and we wouldn’t want you freezing, my Queen. We are just looking out for you.” She said with a smile as she helped me work my arms into the sleeves. It was a complete alien feeling to me, my arms began itching as the cream colored fabric lay on top of them, and once my black pants were pulled up my legs itched as well.

“How do the outsiders do it?” I asked as my pants were being buttoned and my hair was being combed. “This is the most uncomfortable outfit I’ve ever worn in my life. I wouldn’t be able to live like this!”

“Different people from different cultures must wear different clothing, my Queen” My maid chided me, pulling a little too hard at the knots in my hair. “There are some planets completely covered in a substance called  _ snow,  _ and they must wear heavier clothes than this.” She said, I could feel my cheeks glowing in embarrassment. My maids were teaching me something that I didn’t know, they were more knowledgeable than I was. A lump formed in my throat as they pulled me over to the small dining table in the far corner of my bedchamber, it was time for them to iron my hair. I sat as they carefully laid out my hair and utilized the same iron they used to iron my clothing, humming a tune as I tried to keep myself together. I was a wreck, completely unprepared for anything being thrown my way. 

The maids worked their way through my hair as if I were a lifeless rag doll, preparing me for my “flight” as the called it. I had never flown in anything, didn’t even realize I was capable of flying. I thought that was something only birds were capable of doing, soaring throughout the air and taking in the sights from above. I envied them, I wanted to fly just like they could, but not like this.

Victor carried my bag and escorted me outside, the sun was only just now starting to rise which meant likely the rest of our village was still asleep. They wouldn’t know that their Queen was leaving them, that they’d be ruler-less for some time. Would they have even cared? Would they have been happy to see me go? The thoughts only further broke my heart, and once we made our way to clearing in the jungle and I laid eyes on how I was going to be transported to this “ship” I just about lost it.

It was like a giant, metallic eyeball with two almost circular bat wings attached. It looked like a monster, it sounded like a monster, and I was not interested in going anywhere near that monster. Victor gently tugged on my hand, trying to pull me forward toward the machine but I refused. All of our lives we had been told to reject these things, yet here he was leading me right toward one. “My Queen, please just calm down.” He said, pulling me into him as I tried to force my hand from his. “All you have to do is get in, then relax until you get to the Finalizer. You’ll be well taken care of”

“Victor! I can’t go Victor!” I cried, fighting against him as he held me close, hugging me and trying to calm me down. “That monster, it will eat me and I’ll never see Ellone ever again!”  

“Nonsense, my Queen. It’s just a transport vessel, it won’t hurt you.” He said, but I continued on. Crying, kicking, and screaming as he hoisted me into his arms and carried my helpless body closer and closer to the machine. I could hear the low rumbling growing louder in my ears, could feel the heat that radiated off of it. It was a monster, and when I turned my head it looked as if its mouth was open, ready to welcome me into its belly where it would eat me whole and end my life. 

I held onto Victor like a terrified child as he hand delivered me into the mouth of the beast. Never in my life did I think the fairytales of fantastic creatures of dragons and giants my parents told me would be true, I felt like I was in all kinds of danger as the atmosphere around me grew cold and thin.

Through my blurry and panicked vision I watched as Victor dropped me, reaching over and around me to tie me to the seat. I could hear nothing but my own heartbeat in my ears as I realized I couldn’t move. I lurched forward to try and reach Victor but my efforts were in vain. I was tied to some kind of seat and had to watch Victor walk away. I cried for him, I screamed, I begged him to come back but he didn’t. He exited the mouth of the monster and was quickly replaced by one of the robots I had seen so long ago. Their soulless, empty eyes stared at me from the front of the monster as the mouth finally fell closed. This time, I knew I was doomed.

I couldn’t figure out what I had done to anger my people so much that they would willingly feed me to a metal monster. Whatever it was, clearly they didn’t want me back.


	5. Chapter 5

Inside the belly of the monster I sat clutching the rails of my confines. I felt the monster shake around me as the sounds of it roaring clouded around me. Straight ahead there was a window, the eye as I had thought of it previously, and through it I could see the trees of my jungle. In a matter of seconds those trees began swaying, the roaring noise grew louder and soon the monster began to shake even harder. I watched as the trees rose, I was looking at the very tops of them as if I were a bird flying freely in the wind. It was unreal, my stomach churned as I wondered what kind of witchcraft would have manifested such a beast. How could something so big swallow several people whole, then float in the air as if it were weightless? I didn’t get my answer, in fact, I didn’t get anything at all other than complete utter shock.

The monster turned so that we were staring up at the stars, I was lying flat on my back while still in my confines and suddenly everything in my vision turned to nothing but blue and white streaks. My mouth fell open and my head was pressed painfully against the headrest. My voice had escaped me as I watched the horrific scene play out in front of me, I hadn’t even known I had left Ellone until we came to an abrupt stop, one that had thrown me forward so much I was sure I would carry bruises over my torso from the straps that held me in place. Flashes of white clouded my vision, and for a moment that only thing I could focus on was not falling ill over my tumbling stomach. Once I found the strength to open my eyes wider it felt as if everything around me had come to a horrifying stop around me.

Everything in front of me was black, save for the twinkling here and there of what I had assumed was the stars. Was I dreaming? Had I really just ascended into the stars inside of a giant metal beast? I was so awestruck as we glided around, until a massive, metal looking object obstructed my vision. I gawked at it, completely speechless at how massive it was. It looked to be crafted in layers, with ant-like objects flying in and out of it. At this point I still had no idea what was going on, where I was or where I was going other than to a ship in the sky called ‘The Finalizer.’ This looked like no ship to me, yet here we were coming dangerously close to it. There were shadows cast ominously over parts of it, the entire place seemed cold, empty, and lifeless even though there was movement all around it. I had thought the eye like machine that I was currently sitting in was scary before, but I came to realize that, as we neared closer to the object this is what I should have feared the most.

My heart pounded in my chest as we got close enough that the layers I had seen turned into one single layer, and soon it looked as if we were going to crash into the side. My mouth fell open as the window filled with nothing but the light grey metalic parts, but by the time I had opened my mouth to scream we had taken a massive dip, my stomach churned and it felt as if I would lose whatever was left in my belly from dinner the previous night. I held onto my restraints as the beast once again turned upright, and before my very eyes everything went grey.

It would seem like we had pulled into a room, a big room with lots of people and white robots hurrying about. There was one directing us, using two sticks that seemed to glow bright orange. Others stood about staring at us, their eyes shining with some kind of excitement as the beast settled, quieted down, and it’s mouth opened up once again. “Well pretty little princess, welcome onboard the Finalizer.” He said, standing up from his seat and waltzing over to me. There was that word again,  _ The Finalizer.  _ He reached for the restraint holding me in the chair, the loud click caused me to jump nearly out of my skin. The straps came loose, flying over my shoulders and then I was free to go. I wasted no time in jumping up, running past him and out of the mouth of the beast. My heart was pounding in my chest as I ran, but I wasn’t used to the large boots that had been chosen for me back at home. I lost my footing, tumbled down the ramp and ended up flat on my face, my cheek taking the brunt of the impact and leaving me with a searing burn. 

The first thing I noticed about this place was how incredibly cold it was. My eyes flew open as the cold from the metal ground permeated my heavier than usual attire, this was such an alien feeling, I could hardly believe my own senses. Just as I picked my head up a pair of large black boots came into my field of vision. I gasped as I looked up and came face to face with someone I didn’t know, in fact most of the faces I could see around me I didn’t know. I sat up on my knees as I stared at the person smiling mercilessly down at me, he looked like an important figure with his black robes and pale white skin, almost a carbon copy of Hux minus the handsome features and bright red hair.

“Welcome to the First Order, Queen of Ellone.” He said before reaching down and yanking me to my feet. “I am Officer Zoella, here to escort you to your quarters onboard the Finalizer.” He said, shoving me forward. The crowd parted as I stumbled into them, and once again the cruel man took ahold of my arm from behind, stepped in front of me and began dragging me behind him. 

“You know the General won’t appreciate you manhandling his wife, Zoella.” Someone said from the crowd behind us.

“Please. He doesn’t care for her either.” The man said, once again flashing an evil looking grin at me. At that point I had given up, at the mention of my husband I knew I had been delivered right into the hands of my enemy and they were bound to treat me just as poorly as my own husband often did. 

This man pulled me through the crowd, into an open doorway and into even more hustle and bustle than what was in the previous room. There were so many people of all races dressed in mostly black clothing, everyone blended in save for the same white robots I had seen on a regular basis since the Order had first invaded my planet. It was completely overstimulating; the cold air, the snobby looks from the different looking people around me, the black walls and floors, the lights built into the walls and not the ceilings, it was almost too much for me to handle. I fumbled around in my boots when the man finally released me, lost my footing and ended up falling into another common person marching throughout the halls. 

“Watch it!” They shouted, tossing an ugly snarl my way. I opened my mouth and tried to apologize, but was swiftly cut off by the same man, Zoella, taking me by my arm and pulling me along. He mumbled something about me being unaware of my surroundings which only further brought me down, but at this point I was thoroughly defeated. I didn’t have the courage to defend myself when I was alone in a vast sea of unkind strangers. All I could do was stay to myself, stay quiet, and only follow the man that was leading me like cattle.

 

I followed him diligently throughout the halls. Everything looked the same; the floors, the walls, and people. It was such a massive difference from my castle, which was finely decorated with hand-painted art and hand-sculpted statues. This place could not have been anywhere near royalty and I felt like I was sticking out like a sore thumb. I kept my head down until we came to a stop in front of a single door. I watched as he leaned to the right of it and seemed to press some buttons on the door frame, afterword the door whizzed open causing me to flinch. 

“Welcome to your home onboard the Finalizer,  _ Queenie.”  _ The man said, reaching behind me and pushing me in. I only had half a second to see what he was typing on before the set of numbers turned into flashes due to the movement forced upon me. It was a keypad of sorts, and when I realized that it’s what unlocked the door my heart sank. These people were going to be keeping me locked in this room like an animal, and there would be nothing I could do about it.

“This is where you will be staying until your wedding date, all meals and necessities will be delivered to you here.” He said, crossing his arm behind his back and stepping further into the room. 

The entire thing was probably the size of my bedchamber and featured a bed less than half the size of mine back at home. There was a small bookshelf lined with five or so books, a tall black wardrobe in the corner closest to the bed, one closed door which I assumed was a bathroom, and a long black slate hung on the wall in front of one single lounge chair. Pushed up against the wall was a small square table with one single dining chair pushed under it, it was a sad scene. Clearly this room was made to house one person, and it would appear as if was going to be stuck in here by myself with next to nothing to do. 

“If you need anything, you will press the big black button next to the door. It will summon your designated caretaker and they will process your complaints. The door is locked, do not try to escape. Don’t try to pick the lock, don’t even think about running away. Should you be caught roaming the halls alone, you will be reprimanded and punished on sight.” He leaned in closer to me, getting into my personal space and I couldn’t help but to look away. I swept my eyes across the room and noticed there were no windows or other doors in the room. How was I meant to run away if there was only one point of entry? 

“Everyone, in the Order knows you, girl. Everyone knows you and your inability to rule a planet, and nobody had any respect for you. It would be wise of you to let go of your past and earn our respect. Because otherwise you’ll be nothing but our pretty little doormat, a stepping stone to get our hands on your planet. Am I clear?” He asked me, his jaw in a hardpressed line. His words struck fear in my already vulnerable heart, and I didn’t know what to do other than nod my head submissively. How could they not respect me when I was a Queen? I probably held more power than this man ever would in his entire life; yet here he was, calling me a doormat and disrespecting me and my people every step of the way.

He finally backed up off of me, walked backward toward the door all while refusing to remove his eyesight from me. “Tomorrow morning at exactly zero nine hundred hours your caretaker will arrive to take you for a medical exam. Use the alarm clock next to your bed, you’ll be going no matter what you look like.” He said, and with that he turned, walked through the open doorway and slammed the door behind himself. I blinked, fell to my knees as all the information given to me in the last hour swirled around in my head. I was in an unfamiliar environment with unfamiliar people wearing unfamiliar clothing and I had no idea what I was going to happen to me next. What was I going to do?

 

Within the next hour I had stripped down to just the small cotton panties my maids had dressed me in. Using my teeth and sharp nails I managed to cut down the sleeves of my shirt so that it was sleeveless just like my other shirts and I cut it down to cover just my breasts. I removed my bra, even though they weren’t unheard of on Ellone I didn’t want to bother wearing one today. I wanted to be comfortable, and comfortable meant only wearing a shirt and underwear. I’m sure I looked funny to the people who dressed fully, but I didn’t care. I had a book that looked interesting in my hands and was mostly at peace, and in that moment that was all I needed. 

I held the book on the History of the Skywalker family in my hands as I paced the floor. I had tried sitting on the lounge chair but it was made from cold leather, the room in and of itself was colder than I was used to and I had come to find out I didn’t like the cold. However, I didn’t like the restrictive clothing even more so I paced the floor to get my blood flowing and warm myself up. It worked for a while, but only until the sound of my door opening stopped my blood cold in my body. 

I looked up to find an older woman shuffling into my room pushing a cart in front of her. I was frozen in fear, so far 100 percent of the people from the Order that I had met were relentlessly cruel to me and I had no reason to believe this person would do the same. She seemed old, frail, and powerless. I couldn’t believe the Order was making this poor woman work. She was my caretaker, yet it would seem I was supposed to be taking care of her.

Her experienced eyes danced over me as she pushed the cart further into the room, and by the time she stopped our eyes were locked. I stepped back cautiously as the awkward tension in the room rose, I was expecting her to scream at me, to once again put me down like everyone else had, but I was so pleasantly surprised.

“You people.” She rasped, my interest piqued right now. “I didn’t expect your legs and arms to be shaven.” She said, then turned and limped quietly from my room. I was shocked, looked down to my legs which had just been shaven that morning by my maids. What did she mean by ‘you people?’  _ You people.  _ Did that mean she saw me as a  _ kind  _ of person? A kind of person who didn’t shave their bodies? I stared blankly ahead at the cart in front of me, meditating on her words, wondering what other assumptions these people had made about me and my people, other than we apparently didn’t look like the kind of people to shave our legs.

By the time I was alone again I ambled quietly over to the cart she had pulled into the room, the closer I got to it I realized there was a savory smell coming from under the cover. It was shaped like a crab trap, a metal dome sat on the top and from the looks of it, it would lift and reveal something that smelled delicious under it. I took another whiff, it definitely smelled like something breakfast-y. My stomach growled as I laid my hand on the small handle, wondering what the odds were that there would be some kind of poisonous creature underneath that would jump out and kill me, or if there would, indeed, be a plate of food there for me. 

I lifted the cover slowly, bending over and eyeing the inside cautiously. My face was immediately hit with steam, something not nearly as dangerous as a snake could be. I moved my face away and found I was looking at something much more interesting.

It was a plate of scrambled eggs, two rolled up sausages, and a cup of fruit on the side. I lifted the top all the way up and allowed the dim ceiling light to shine on the food, it looked and it looked just as delicious as it smelled. The eggs were fluffy, obviously cooked with milk and were a vibrant yellow, the sausages were thick and meaty, and the mix of strawberries, blueberries, and orange slices were colorful and appealing to my eye. I found myself drooling, my large appetite lead me just like it did at home. I lifted the plate, gathered up my cup of water and eating utensils and hurried over to the small table, feeling like I was unable to move fast enough. 

The first thing I dug into was the egg, eggs were among my favorite foods and I wasn’t going to put it off a minute longer. I had scooped an entire spoonful into my mouth, the milk was dripping off of it back onto the plate when I hate placed it onto my tongue. I closed my eyes and savored the taste for a moment--just  _ one  _ moment-- before I threw my mouth open with a disgusted groan, letting the eggs fall from my mouth onto my plate. I let out another groan as I used my fingers to wipe my tongue clean from the vile food that I had been tricked into eating. Whatever that was that I had just ate was not egg. Or at least they weren’t the fresh eggs that were gathered from the hens the castle kept. Whatever they were, they were an abomination and I would not be touching them further.

I turned my attention to the fruit, completely ignoring the sausages as I was sure if the eggs weren’t fresh then the meat wouldn’t be either. I reached in, taking a strawberry between my thumb and pointer finger. The berry looked red, looked ripe, and smelled just as fruity and tasteful as any other strawberry would. I opened my mouth reluctantly, there was no way for them to mess up strawberries, right?

Wrong.

The berry immediately turned to much as soon as it was placed on my tongue. It had next to no fresh taste and, just as the eggs did, they ended up back on my place in a mush of yellow and red goop. I pushed myself away and looked at the plate completely appalled, how could anyone eat this garbage and call it a meal? I picked up the plate and stormed to the door, the man told me if I had a complaint all I had to do was press the button next to the door, and after eating this excuse for breakfast I was ready to complain to everyone. 

Holding the plate I stood in front of the door for ten minutes, tapping my toes and waiting for the exact moment the door would open. It didn’t come soon enough, and as soon as I saw the older woman inching her way through the door I knew I had to calm myself. She was old and likely unable to defend herself, I couldn’t take my anger out on her. It would be more than just the food I was angry about; it would be the fact that I was forced here against my will, the fact that I was cold, the fact that I was being married to someone who didn’t respect me or my people, among other things. I cleared my throat, stood tall and recentered myself, when I felt my anger had dissipated I calmly expressed my number one concern at the moment.

“I need a new plate of food.” I said, holding the tray out to her. “None of this is fresh like on Ellone, these eggs must have been sitting for weeks and I don’t know what’s wrong with this fruit, but it’s not good for me.” The woman just stared at me, her face unreadable. She looked a lot like my mother did in her final weeks, and because of that my heart softened. Surely she wasn’t the one who had made his food, harvested the eggs and the meat of the boar for me? If only I could have spoken to the chef instead of burdening her with my minuscule problems, even in my life this was the smallest of issues. But it was the only issue I had the power to correct.

Her eyes darted down to my plate and then back up to me, her mouth seemed to always form a slight smile which definitely contrasted the words that came out of her mouth next: “We’re floating in space on a massive Star Destroyer. Where do you think we get fresh foods from?” She asked, my mouth fell open in shock. The smile never left her as she slowly turned around and left me alone, slamming the door in my face. I took a step back as my body numbed over, thinking over her words. It didn’t occur to me that there would be no fresh food on this vessel, there were no hens to lay eggs, no trees or gardens to grow fruits and vegetables, the food that I’d be eating here would be subpar, and for some reason this scared me even more than being in an unknown location. I didn’t know what I was eating, who was cooking it, or how it was being cooked, it was yet another unknown in my current situation, another thing I had no control over.

I turned and sat the plate down on the table, then simply lay flat across the floor, spreading my arms and legs out like a starfish washed up on one of the sunny beaches of my planet. The carpet beneath me tickled my bare skin, on Ellone there was no carpet; not in the shops, not in my castle, and definitely not in the homes of my citizens. This was a new experience for me, and in that moment I decided to just focus on the prickly, black carpet beneath me.

 

At some point I must have fallen asleep, exhausted from the events that had woken me early that morning. By the time I had awoken my stomach had begun cramping in its emptiness, I still felt like I couldn’t keep my eyes open but the door rattling open kept me awake. I craned my neck back just enough to watch the older woman carting yet another plate of food into my room, the same unmovable smile plastered across her face. I sat myself up just as she turned to leave and called out to her. I scrambled to my feet, running past the cart and up to her.

I gripped the handle and shoved the cover up, revealing a hot, steamy bowl of soup. It was creamy and white, like mushroom soup but didn’t smell anything like it. There were chunks of deep green and brown floating throughout it, and I had some champagne colored liquid to drink along with it. I turned my nose up at it, remembering how disgusting the breakfast she had brought me was, before I would eat it I had to know what it was made with.

“Is this food fresh?” I asked, using my pointer finger to push on one of the green chunks. The woman only stared at me for a moment before turning and shuffling out the door, but before she left I called out my final demand: “I won’t be eating anything unless it’s fresh, just like back on Ellone!” I put my foot down and displayed a rigid look of authority as best as I could, not that I had ever acted like an authoritative figure before. Evidently it did not work, because she kept walking, once again slamming the door behind her. I stood there frustrated, looking down at the soup while my stomach growled. Every fiber in my body was telling me to just try it, to nourish myself but I couldn’t stand eating something that would be bad for me. I took a few steps away, staring down at the torn pieces of my clothing on the floor when another painful stomach cramp prompted me to look up at the soup one more time. Maybe one drop, one spoonful would satiate my hunger and I’d be able to hold out a little while longer.

I reached for the spoon next to the bowl and dipped it in the soup, it was thick and clung to the spoon like honey fresh from a beehive. Reluctantly I lifted it to my lips, stuck my tongue out and let a small drop come to rest on the very tip. Immediately I regretted my decision, the overwhelming tastes of salt caused me to pucker my lips and spit the offending food back into the bowl from which it came. In that moment I was furious.

They take me from my planet, force me to marry one of them, and now they feed me, a Queen, this subpar, flavorless, disgusting food? This was the most insulting thing to come from this forced arrangement. In a rage I pushed the cart over, sending the overly salty soup crashing into the carpet and ruining it for good. It wasn’t my problem, this wasn’t my home. I stepped over the mess I had made and headed right to the bed where I would sit until someone took me seriously; I would perish in the room before these people continued to disrespect me.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: Medical exams, including gynecological.

Here I was, middle of the night with nothing but my stomach keeping me wide awake. I was hungry, I was cranky, and I was alone. All of this coupled with the small stiff mattress below me and the flimsy blanket above me meant I hadn’t gotten one single second of sleep on my first night away from home, and the next day I surely paid the price.

There was no sun to tell me that it was time to rise, instead the old woman that had kept me the day before simply walked into my room and rasped at me to wake up. Tears threatened to spill from behind my eyes as I sat straight up, I could feel sleep finally pulling at my mind as the woman smiled at me like she always did. “What do you mean it’s time to rise, the sun hasn’t even risen!” I said in an outrage. My body felt slow and sluggish as my eyelids drooped, sleep threatening to consume me at any second while I waited for her to explain herself.

“There’s a clock on the side of your bed that reads time, it’s nine in the morning and it’s time for your medical appointment.” I turned to each side of me until I noticed a small box that was lit with red numbers. 9:02, it read, I had never seen anything like it. I was familiar with a clock, but not one like this. Was this what that man was talking about yesterday? An  _ alarm  _ clock, this was totally new to me.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed to try and reason with the woman, to tell her that I had gotten no sleep the previous night and wasn’t in the mood to have a medical exam, but when she saw that I was completely naked she averted her eyes, looking toward the closet and sighing heavily. “The General was right,” She breathed. “You people do act like animals.”

I gasped and stepped back, I had never been more insulted in my life! I had spent time last night looking for nightclothes like I normally wear, but I had only found long sleeved shirts and pants just as I had worn during the day. I knew there was no way I would be comfortable sleeping in such restrictive clothing so instead I slept in nothing. It was cold that night, and even when standing there in front of her I was shivering but it was only natural. On Ellone we aren’t afraid of seeing natural bodies, we wore very little clothing and in our homes it wasn’t uncommon to sleep nude. To this woman it was enough to warrant me animalistic, but she knew nothing of me, my people, and my culture. How could she make an assumption like this without having even set foot on Ellone? It was insulting, and if I were going to be completely honest I was completely fed up with her and her behavior. Her refusal to bring me fresh food, her refusal to give me the respect a Queen deserves; it had all built up inside me and mixed with my lack of sleep and I couldn’t stop myself from finally giving her a piece of my mind.

“This General man, he wouldn’t take kindly to hearing you call his beloved wife an animal, yes?” I asked her, taking a step toward her and crossing my arms over my breasts. I knew the man Armitage Hux didn’t think so highly of me, but surely his name must have meant something to her. Surely I could use him to verbally strike this woman, to instill fear in her and gain the respect I deserve from her. She did nothing but stare at me, that same stone cold smile etched on her face that didn’t mean anything. She took one staggering step toward me and in response I took a step back, but couldn’t get out of the way fast enough before she snatched the blanket off of my bed and threw it at me.

“Come, young one.” She said just as I caught the blanket. “There’s no time for you to blabber on about your husband that doesn’t want you. It’s time for your check up and I’ll have to take you dressed in this.” She said, turning toward the door and hobbling toward it. I stared at her in shock, how was I meant to wear a thin blanket out in public where I would be seen by hundreds of people with an obvious fear of nudity? My rank on this ‘ship’ would drop lower than it ever would have and there was no way I would be obliging with her absurd demands. 

“You’re a fool if you think I’ll leave in nothing but a blanket!” I yelled at her, throwing the blanket back onto the bed and shoving past her to the closet. “You people and your ignorance. Give me two minutes to ready myself you impatient hag, that’s all you had to do.” I said, once again feeling the tiredness pulling me back to the bed.  Reluctantly I made my way past her to the closet to grab something sensible to wear, but as soon as I had opened the closet door my vision was immediately obstructed with my black blanket. I shrieked as the blanket wrapped around my body and I was being forcibly pulled away. 

“I’ve told you, we have no time for this.” The old woman rasped as she pulled me all the way to the door. I was shocked by her strength, and even though I was sure I could fight her off I decided not to. I was raised to respect my elders, and even though this old woman did not respect me in the slightest it would only paint me and my “animalistic” people in a harsher light if I would have fought her. She pulled, and pulled, and pulled on the blanket until we had made it out into the bustling hallway where she finally let go, finally allowing me free will. I wasn’t expecting her to drag me out in front of everyone, to take the chance of everyone seeing me nude. It was embarassing, and just as soon as I was able to back myself into the doorway of my room and adjust the blanket I immediately regretted my decision to not throw her through the wall.

“Come, child.” She began, shuffling in front of me. “We haven’t got all day.”

 

Just like a towel right out of the shower I had the blanket wrapped snuggly around me, a sheer look of horror on my face as I held it as tight to my body as I could. I followed the woman submissively as we walked down the halls, the judgemental gazes of those around me pulling all kinds of emotions from my head. I had never been so mortified, so embarrassed in my life. In fact, this was such a new feeling that it created a tickle in my throat; A feeling that made me bend my tongue backward to try and feel what it was that was tickling my throat, but of course I felt nothing. It was odd, I had never felt anything like it before but I could only assume that it was my nerves. I only had so many medical exams in my life, and none had taken place in such a high tech location such as a ship floating around in space.

Regardless, I kept my composure. I was Ellone’s queen whether I was dressed in the finest of cloth or nothing at all and I represented our people. I stuck my chin in the air and owned the blanket that was concealing my body, I ravished the looks of disgust and horror even though I was still severely tired, all the way to the large double doors that read  _ Medbay.  _

As brave as I tried to be, chills still ran through my skin. People were coming in and out of doors, sitting in the waiting area clearly in pain and everything was so alien. Never in my life had I seen so many people waiting to receive medical attention; Although I had never been around so many people in one area. After seeing the size of this ship as well as all of the people that wandered around in the last day I was sure the population far surpassed that of Ellone. 

I followed the old woman up to the front desk where a snobby looking woman was typing away on a computer. I wasn’t sure where it was coming from, either my irritableness from my lack of sleep or from simply the way I was raised, but all the technology that surrounded me just disgusted me.  These computers, these electronic tablets and other devices I had seen these people use. All for what? How would they function if it were not accessible to them, if they were broken or taken away? My parents always told me that technology can’t be relied on, and because of that we on Ellone did everything by hand. Mathematics, record keeping, writing, the list goes on--and we thrived. “The Queen here for her exam?” The woman behind the counter asked. My caretaker only nodded her head, sending several things into motion. 

Clutching the blanket in my sweaty hands I followed closely behind both women until I made it into a  small room that featured all kinds of equipment I had never seen before. Jars of wooden sticks topped with cotton, a large, leather topped examination table, plastic replicas of organs; All stuff that I had never seen before in my life. 

“Have her sit, the doctor will be in shortly.” The snob said, throwing a black folder down on the counter before waltzing confidently out the door and leaving me alone with the old woman. My head pounded with a nasty headache while my eyelids drooped, suddenly the examination table was looking incredibly comfortable. Even though I was both intrigued and horrified at everything that surrounded me I decided to climb up onto the table and lay myself down. When doctors examined you they typically did it while you were laying down, so I thought perhaps I could relax for just a minute; to catch my breath and pretend that I wasn’t so out of my element. I was tired, I was afraid, and most importantly, I wanted to go home. I adjusted myself on the cold, stiff table, laid my head down on the end and simply shut my eyes, hoping that even just a few seconds of rest would make me feel better.

And I did rest, at least it felt like I did for a little while. I gasped as I sat up, cold immediately engulfing every inch of my skin as I realized my blanket was no longer on me. I looked up and saw it cascading like a black satin waterfall behind someone dressed in all white, a blue mask covering his mouth and nose. “This the girl, the full exam?” He asked, turning toward my caretaker and pushing me back down onto the examination table. I scowled at him, trying desperately to cover myself. Gooebumps broke out over my skin from the cold air, and I barely had enough time to look over at my caretaker to see her nod before the doctor had his hands on me again.

I groaned as he pressed his fingers into my temples, then reached around and pressed his fingers into the back of my head and my forehead. I protested the entire time, demanding that he stop this mistreatment. But he refused, only staring down at me with a look of unamusement. Once he was done with my head he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small black tube, clicked it on and soon a bright light was shining directly into my eyes. I screeched as I pushed him away, it only intensified my headache and I didn’t think I could take much more. “Leave me alone you mongrel!” I shouted, but the evil man only laughed at me.

“She is tired, look at these heavy bags under her eyes.” He said, clearly not speaking to me. I was offended, how can these people treat an innocent woman, a Queen no less, like this? Doctors were meant to serve their patients, but this man seemed to not pay me or my needs any mind. I opened my mouth to tell him that I had gotten very little sleep, but he silenced me once again by shining the light in my other eye. 

“Would you stop tha--” I started, but was cut off once again. I was horrified to find that he had shoved his fingers deep into my throat, pressing my tongue down so that he could shine his light into my mouth. I gagged, once again reaching up and trying to push him off of me. Faint memories of some of the intimate moments I had spent with Victor came rushing back to me, but this experience wasn’t nearly as enjoyable as those were. Finally he pulled his fingers from between my teeth, taking a disgusted look down at his blue gloves. 

I bared my teeth at him, kicking myself for not thinking of biting him while he had his fingers in my mouth. “Insufferable.” I mumbled at him as I sat myself up, running my tongue over my teeth and trying to expel the disgusting taste of latex from my mouth, but it would seem like his next concern was my ear canals. I tried moving away from him but he held me still as he shined the light into each of my ears, then declared that everything in my head looked good. 

“Throat is a little inflamed, but that won’t deter her wedding in a few days.” He said, moving his attention down to my neck and collarbones. 

“ _ Inflamed?”  _ I asked him, that was a new word to me. Did he mean my throat was on fire? That sounded horrifying! “What does that mean?”

“It means you’ve been infected with a rhinovirus.” He said, I gasped and threw my hands over my chest.

“A Rhinovirus?!” I shrieked, feeling my heartbeat quicken to an unimaginable pace. I had never heard of such a thing. I knew that a Rhino was a type of creature on a far off planet, so the only thing I could think of was that I had caught some disease that only they carried. I whimpered, thoughts of illness and death racing through my mind until I noticed something sinister about the doctor. He was smiling as he pulled the instrument from around his neck, following up with a roll of his eyes. 

“A cold, you have a cold.” He retorted, sticking the apparatus into his ears and pressing the end into the skin of my bare chest. The way he said the word ‘cold’ hurt me, mostly because I still had no idea what he was talking about. The air on this ship was cold, the disk that he was pressing into the skin of my chest was cold, and now apparently I had a cold too. I blinked as he pressed the item into the sides of my ribcage next, thinking maybe colds only existed in cold environments and that’s how I came down with one.

“Lungs and heart sounds good.” He mentioned, still not addressing me. Next he dropped his hands to my hips, squeezing each side gently and then moving down to my thighs. From the awkward look on his face I could tell he, just like everyone else on this ship, was uncomfortable with my nakedness, but I truly didn’t care. I simply observed him as he massaged his way down my thighs and calves, ending with my feet as he rolled them throughout their sockets. 

By the time he confirmed my muscles and range of motion were good I wrapped my arms around myself, warming my body as I still had chills running throughout my skin. “Are we done here?” I asked him, looking at the floor for my blanket again. After being manhandled so badly and tossed around like a sack of dirt I was ready to go back to my little home and be alone. The doctor removed his gloves, tossing them in the nearby trash can before moving to the sink to wash his hands. 

“I need a vile of your blood as well as your saliva, but my medical assistants can take care of that.” He said, and once again I was blindsided.

“You need my blood?” I asked, looking down my arms and trying to find my veins. “How are you going to take an entire vile of my blood?” I wasn’t thinking straight, I didn’t think that a vile wasn’t that big but at the time any amount of blood taken from me was scary. 

“A needle.” The doctor said, sounding taken aback by my ignorance. 

“A needle?” I asked, still not understanding.

“Yes, a needle. I need to perform a screening of your blood and your saliva to clear you for your wedding. Now if you would excuse me--” The doctor said, gathering up the files and stepping closer to the door. However, before he could make his exit my caretaker stopped him. 

“The General also wants a gynecological exam as well.” She whispered, the same stale smile decorating her face. “He is going to be married to her, after all. He may want to indulge himself.” There was silence as the doctor looked at her absolutely horrified, but I was still stuck on one word. 

“What is a gynecological exam?” I asked. Later on, I would come to regret ever asking.

I felt like I had been sincerely and utterly violated by that man. He did his best to explain what was going to happen to me, that he would need a sample from both my vaginal walls and the head of my cervix. I had never heard of such a thing or had this kind of exam done on me, and afterword I was sure I never wanted one again. There was a long, cold, metal tool used to part my flesh and give him access to parts of my body even I had never touched, and it was one of the most painful exams I had ever had in my life. The last portion involved him penetrating me with his two fingers, going so far inside of me that I felt like I was going to gag. By the time he was pulling out of me, bottling the cotton tip samples, and throwing his gloves away I felt light headed, dizzy, and as if I had been assaulted. I sat up and wrapped my arms around myself, still throbbing from the intrusive exam. I could only pray that everything he found was healthy, because no one, not even my personal doctors, ever even suggested such a thing on Ellone.

“Tell the General I’ll have the results to him by tomorrow evening.” The man said after washing his hands. He picked up my file and shuffled himself out, and once again I was alone with the old woman; the same silly smile on her face as if she had not just watched me writhe in pain for the last ten minutes.

 

After watching my blood be sucked through a transparent tube and into a small container I was escorted to the small living space where I immediately dropped my blanket and ravished the feeling of my nudity. It was freeing, especially since I was still throbbing between my legs. I huffed, wondering if these people were truly causing me more good than harm, but as I turned to the closet to dress myself I was surprised to see the duffle bag Victor had packed for me sitting on the floor. I had completely forgotten about it, and even if I did remember that it had come with me I was sure that these evil people wouldn’t have let me had any of my possessions. 

I immediately dropped to a squat and unzipped the bag, the first thing that jumped out at me was a thick garment. It was light pink, almost pearlescent in color and upon being felt turned out to be covered in a rougher lace pattern. It was beautiful, like something anyone from Ellone would be married in. I didn’t remember seeing Victor pack this for me and I was eager to open it and see the whole of it, so I wasted no time in taking it in both of my hands and opening it to its fullest. On it was a note that said  _ Wedding Dress  _ in none other than Victor’s silly handwriting. 

I held it out and looked at the beautiful white lace pattern, it almost blended in with the light pink that most of the dress was made out of but I was still able to see it. It was light, airy, something that anyone would feel like royalty in. The torso was thin, strapless, and very low cut. By Ellone’s standards it was inconspicuous and not flashy at all, but that was okay. Had I been getting married to someone worthy of a grand, outgoing dress I would have requested one. This plain one would do just fine.

My eyes shut involuntarily as I hugged the dress to myself, overcome with emotion as I realized this was one piece of my culture that I was allowed to keep away from home. It was such a wonderful, heart wrenching moment, if I had not been pricked in the hip by something extraordinary sharp. I jumped back and dropped the dress, looking down at the small cut in my hip as a small bead of blood formed over it. What was that about? I picked the dress up and shook it, thinking perhaps there was a forgotten sewing needle in the fabric or something, but as it turned out it was something far more sinister.

When nothing fell from the dress I set it back down and fished through the layers until I came to something solid. My eyes widened, threatening to roll right out of my eye sockets as they laid on a set of daggers that had been crudely taped to the inner-most layer of my dress. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, the blade of the one closest to me shined in what little light existed in the room and part of me still didn’t think what I was seeing was true. I ran my finger over the blade, it was cold, it was unforgiving just like any other knife was and I had no real idea why it was in my dress. 

I twisted it, trying to figure out who would have placed them in my dress to kill me when I found a small piece of paper taped to the handle. I waffled for a while on if I wanted to open it; with the pain I was in, the ‘cold’ I was experiencing, my hunger, and my lack of sleep I was worried about losing my mind. What if someone really was trying to kill me, what if it were Hux, or the little old stubby maid? It was terrifying, and for a moment I jolted to my feet and ran over to door where I rested my hand on the button. However, before I could press the button the weak tape fell from the handle and the paper dangled loosely at my hand. The first thing I noticed was that it was written in familiar handwriting:

_ My dear Queen, _

_ Do me and all of your citizens a favor. _

_ Kill your husband. _

_ -V _


	7. Chapter 7

Growing up I had been taught to defend myself. Self-defense and being independent were highly valued traits on Ellone, so when tasked with killing someone I had no doubt in my mind that I could accomplish it. That was, after I had spent three days sitting in my room staring at the daggers and the note wondering if they were going to kill me instead. I was never fond of my husband, but that didn’t mean I wanted to kill him. On the third day, the day after my dress fitting and the day before my actual wedding, I sat there in my modified short clothing, pressing the sharp tip of the blade into my finger and remembering all the awful things I had seen Hux do to me and my friends. The way he threw Aurine into the fountain and the way he pushed me to the floor because he thought I was simply a maid. If he were willing to do these things to me and my friends then surely he would be willing to do the same to my people? 

I closed my eyes, Victor was right. The man was a menace come to terrorize my people and assert himself to my rightful throne. There was no telling what he’d be willing to do to us when he got into actual power. With my eyes shut tight I focused all of my energy on everything I hated about him; he was cocky, he was arrogant, and he was ignorant of the needs of the people around him. What kind of Queen would I be if I allowed such a person to rule beside me? Again, Victor was right. I should have never allowed this game of war to come this far. I opened my eyes and peered proudly at the daggers in each of my hands, I could do this. If not for me, then for the people that I love; the people that doubt my ability to help them.

By now the “cold” that I had (a disease I had never experienced until I set foot onto the Finalizer) was at its worst; my nose seeped runny yellow mucus at all hours of the day, my throat hurt so much I could hardly consume anything other than overly salty soups that they brought me, and my body was cold and ached no matter what I wore. By the second night I had spent in that room I was sure I was going to die. However, when I decided that I would need to carry out this hit order I realized I could use the disease to my advantage.

I dressed in the heaviest long-sleeved clothing I could find and slipped the two thin daggers beneath my sleeves, the blades resting snuggly on the tops of my wrists so I wouldn’t accidentally injure myself. Even in these uncomfortable garments I was still cold, surely when I called my caretaker she would believe me that I needed medical attention. I stalked over to the button and pressed it, stood there next to the door shaking and dramatizing my symptoms until the door opened and in shuffled the old lady that I had grown to despise. 

“Yes?” She asked, I cleared my throat and took a step closer to her.

“I, I need to go to the hospital.” I whispered to her before crossing my arms over one another to further conceal the daggers. When she didn’t answer me I continued to try and explain the situation, exaggerating my every symptom and expressing my concerns about getting married the next day while being so sick. She still stared at me like nothing I was saying was making sense to her, annoying me with every passing second until she finally turned and started heading toward the door.

“Lets get you to the doctor then.” She said. “The General won’t want to be anywhere near you if you’re ill.” I closed my eyes and pushed her subtly insulting comment to the back of my mind. At least my plan had started to work. 

 

All throughout the walk around the still so unfamiliar ship I kept my thoughts calm and pristine, running through the moves I had been taught as a child. To fight with two daggers was much different than to fight with a staff or a sword. You had to be quick and you had to always be moving from your opponents. I had learned how to run, roll, duck, and dodge quick opponents so I wasn’t as concerned as I should have been. Instead I worried about what implications would come if I succeeded in ending my husband's life. General Hux was a valued member of the Order and he was high ranking, surely if I succeeded and got caught I would be put to death. I wrinkled my nose as I realized I would have to escape as soon as I could. That could pose problems, but I was sure that with the General’s blood on my hands and two daggers I could convince any piolet to do my bidding. After all, I was a queen. They would have to obey me. 

My stomach churned in complete nervousness, I didn’t even want to think of what would happen if I failed. Negative mindsets carried negative energy, and the last thing I needed at the moment was negative energy. I could do this, I could bring an end to Hux’s evil reign of terror and take care of my people. 

As soon as we got to a secluded enough hallway I faltered behind my caretaker for a moment and took a look around. We were alone, down a hallway that was away from other people. Now was my chance, to knock this bothersome old lady out and run. I was sweating as I tiptoed up behind her until I was just close enough, then I pounced like a jaguar. 

I wrapped my arms around her neck and squeezed, fighting against me until she had gone completely still. I did my best to peer over her shoulder and when I saw the dead look in her eye I finally let her go, watching her limp body fall to my feet. I took a step back in an attempt to catch my breath; never in my life did I think I’d be doing this to an innocent old lady but she deserved it. All those rude comments about my people and our customs, just who did she think she was? Even as she sat there on the ground unconscious that shit eating smile still sat upon her face. I wanted to punch her, to break her fragile body for every time she had tormented me. But I didn’t have the time, I had to hide her body.

A few feet down the hall was a door, and while trying to keep my anxiety in a bind I sprinted to it and threw it open to find exactly what I needed: a supply closet. Without even thinking any further I ran back to the woman’s body and pulled her along the floor, breaking out in a sweat every step of the way. She was heavier than she looked, dragging her from under her arms was difficult but I managed to pull it off, stuff her body into the closet and close the door behind me. I sat back against it and allowed myself just a few moments to catch my breath, but a few moments were all I had before I took off speed walking down the hall away from the scene of my crime.

I was alone for a long time, running along the black corridors all by myself and suddenly feeling hopeless. This ship was massive and I knew absolutely no one. How was I supposed to find the General all by myself? I let out a frustrated sigh as I slid into a fork in the halls, there must be someone--anyone around here. The few times I had been out there were people everywhere; I had to wonder if Hux knew about my plan and had thwarted my plans by sheltering everyone in place. I looked down each hallway on the verge of falling into a panic when I spied the last thing I had wanted to see a few days ago, but the number one thing I needed at the moment: a white robot strolling down the hall.

“Wait, hello!” I cried out, taking off down the hallway as fast as I could. My body aches and heavy clothing threatened to slow me down but I wouldn’t allow my newly contracted illness stop me in protecting my planet. The robot turned its head toward me and I waved my arms to catch its attention. “Help! I need your help!” I shouted, picking up speed as fast as I could. It turned its whole body toward me just as I came within five feet of it. The heavy boots I had thrown on came clunking to a stop in front of it and I found myself collapsing at my waist, doubling over as my lungs and throat burned from the overexertion. I huffed and I puffed, trying to catch my breath as the robot barked out a monotonic ‘can I help you?’ 

“Yes, yes. I need, need you to tell me--” I stuttered out before another violent coughing fit overtook my body. My throat was so sore that I thought I would soon cough up blood, perhaps this cold that I had been diagnosed with would be the death of me after running so quickly. The robot stepped away and I held my hand out to stop them, standing up straight and orienting myself as best as I could.

“Please, my husband, General Armitage Hux. I must know where he is.”  I continued to silence my coughs as I waited for the robot to answer me, it was a difficult action as I had never coughed this much or this forcefully before. 

“He’s at the bridge.” It said, then stepped away from me and began walking down the hallway from where it came.

“Wait!” I called out, stepping after it. “The bridge? What’s that? How do I get there?” It stared at me, then let out a sigh just as I had a few minutes prior.

“You’re not from around here, are you?” It asked, but I didn’t have time to answer it’s smart ass comment. Did I look like a robot? No. did I look stuck up? No. I wasn’t from around here but I needed directions. Did that really require an insult as well? The robot shook it’s head before it gave me the most confusing set of directions in my lifetime: Two lefts, a right, then straight ahead through two intersecting hallways. From there take the elevator to the 22nd floor and go striaght, don’t turn anywhere until I got to the second elevator. I ride that elevator up to the 31st floor and make two rights, then the door to the Bridge will be right there. 

I repeated the steps in my head the entire time, thanked the robot and then ran off, only hoping that this thing would have been merciful enough to have given me correct directions. 

 

I followed it's every direction until I came off of the second elevator, from there signs hung on the wall that pointed in every which direction. Including the Bridge. I stepped to the side of everyone else and took a moment to catch my breath and calm my nerves. I was as sweaty as a hog left out in the sun and was again coughing as if I were going to expel my own soul. The people around me stared and gave me some deathly and disgusted stares; if I were going to pull this off I needed to not be under a microscope. I straightened myself out, quieted my coughs and simply started walking through the crowd. I was just another member of the Order here to do Orderly things, there was nothing special about me.

I walked in circles for a while to lose people's attention and when I felt like no one was watching me I made the final right to the Bridge. It was down quite a long hallway and every step I made echoed off the walls. My stomach churned every second and I felt as if I was going to lose what little food I had been able to eat over the last day. Would I really be able to do this? I was so sick, so out of breath and so out of my element. It seemed like such an impossible task but I had come this far. There was no way I could back down now, Victor and everyone on Ellone were counting on me. As I got closer to the door I allowed the daggers to fall into my hands, ready to pull out as just the right moment. I was ready, I was willing, I was strong. I could do this.

As quietly as I could I opened the door and slipped in through the smallest crack. Around me the air was alive with different kinds of buzzing and whizzing, and when I took a look around I realized I was surrounded by technology. There were screens showing all sorts of different colors, numbers, and symbols. There were buttons of all shapes, sizes, and colors. I was astounded, there was so much technology in this one room that I nearly missed the triangular shaped windows that looked out into the vast emptiness of space. 

It truly was a sight to behold. The flickering of the stars, the seemingly never-ending blackness. Never did I take the time to sit and think about how many stars there truly were, or that there’d even be more stars and planets than I could see. All the times Aurine and I used to try and count them, or name them, we didn’t know that there’d be this many we would have to account for. I began to feel weak, here I was thinking that I, the Queen of Ellone, was so big, bad, bold, and important, when in reality I was small, meager, and insignificant. There was so much more out there than I had been taught to fear, other people, other planets, and other stars, that I had held myself to a much higher standard. That simply wasn’t the case. I was one thing of billions, one person out of trillions. I wasn’t that special, I was just a girl.

I was ripped from my self deprecating thoughts by the sound of a door opening to my right. The loud crash caused me to inadvertently fly back into the door from where I came in order to disguise myself, whoever this was I was not ready to reveal myself yet. I swept my eyes across the floor to my right and stared on as a black, hooded figure thumped all the way up to the long row of buttons and then just stood there. There was no light in this room so I could hardly tell if it were him or not. Everyone on this ship wore black so they blended in with the shadows around them, other than the gloved hands that began pressing buttons and tapping on the screens. I squint my eyes, listened for the sounds of anyone else that could be around but I could hear no one. This must have been him, my husband, General Armitage Hux. 

His hands stopped playing with the buttons and went behind his back, he simply observed what was going on in the stars just as I had before. This was it, I had to make my move before he walked away. I straightened the daggers in my hands and finally exposed them, creeping from the darkness and into the light of the stars and moons. One step at a time I made my way along the wall until I was standing directly behind him. The daggers threatened to fall from my sweaty palms as I cleared my mind of everything. My only goal was to penetrate his skin and penetrate it as fast as I could. No mercy needed, no mercy deserved.

I took a step toward him, pulling my arm back past my side in the ready position to strike when my nose began tickling. I could tell I needed to sneeze but didn’t have the time. I took another step, sucked air into my nose and mouth to hold my breath and in that moment the pressure in my nose became unbearable. Before I knew it my body was expelling the foreign object in my nostrils, starting with a massive inhale and ending with a sneeze so powerful I could see the particles fly from my nose and mouth and glisten in what little light was in the room.

In that heart-stopping moment the room was lit in a red glow. A monstrous sound echoed throughout the walls and soon I was staring at a blade of fire that was swinging right toward me. I had no time to react except for what my gut told me to do: to bend at my waist backward to avoid contact.

The heat of the blade just narrowly missed the tip of my red, raw nose. I could feel the heat radiating off of it and onto my me. It was horrifying and I instantly knew that I had failed. With a grunt I dropped to my knees and immediately went for his ankles, but just narrowly missed a swinging of his boot. I rolled, stood to my feet as fast as I could before yet again dodging his fire stick again. Had I been able to think clearly instead of focusing on my self-defense moves I probably would have been able to think through the scenario and realize that the one who carried this cackling red stick of fire was not my husband. But I didn’t have the time, instead I had to fight, to duck and dodge every movement that came my way. Every once and a while I would swing at the right moment and manage to cut the man, but I didn’t feel his warm and wet blood on my body like I have with my opponents of the past. 

I still fought against his every move, the sword came in contact with the buttons and screens of the control panels and sent white-hot sparks cascading onto my skin. The man wore me out, I could feel my body tiring just as soon as someone else stepped in on our fight.

“ _ What’s going on here?!”  _ Yelled a familiar voice, I froze where I was and turned to face the new source of light and immediately recognized the silhouette as the man I was really looking for. Hux stepped into the light and had the  most unamused, hardened scowl on his face. By now The Supreme Leader had stopped fighting me, and even though I was exhausted I managed to instantly build up the energy to run head first to the man I needed to kill. I bared my teeth as I took three thunderous running steps toward him only to be thrown backward by a set of invisible hands.

“My, the woman you’ve married has quite the fight in her, Hux.” The Supreme Leader said just as my body crashed into the melted control panel. Everything about me was aching and I had officially counted myself as defeated. I heard both men coming my way, knowing that they would have no mercy on my I simply bowed my head and waited for my death. I had failed myself and my people, the only thing that could pull me from my embarrassment would be a quick death by either of them.

“And tell me; Why were you fighting my wife on the Bridge of my ship?” Hux asked him, and for a moment it would sound like he was more irritated with The Supreme Leader than he was with me. 

“She attacked me, the girl wielded two daggers and actually managed to cut my uniform.” He clarified. I watched as my husband looked him up and down, admiring the foot long tears in his torso. That’s why I wasn’t drawing blood, because the man had some kind of layer under his clothing to protect himself. 

“What are you doing out of your room by yourself, girl?” Hux finally addressed me, towering intimidatingly over me as he spoke. “And what would make you think it’s acceptable to attack your Supreme Leader?” I sneered at him, but I knew what would be best for this scenario. Say nothing, do nothing, don’t incriminate yourself.

“From her thoughts, it sounds like she was trying to assassinate you.” The Supreme Leader spoke up, Hux eyes widen as he looks from me to him. “I don’t know how she got out on her own, or how she knew we were here, but let me tell you, she’s valuable.”

“Valuable? Is that what you think Ren?” There was silence before Hux reached down and grabbed me by the front of my shirt, beginning to drag me to the door from where he came. “You can marry her then, because I refuse to keep a woman around that conspires to end my life.” I whimpered as my unwilling feet dragged behind Hux, and just when I decided to try and fight back the other side of my shirt was grasped by The Supreme Leader and I was pulled toward him.

“Nonsense Hux.” Ren said, pulling me back into him and running his gloved hands through my hair as if he were fixing it for me. “You can’t kill her, your wedding is tomorrow. And if you ask me, she can trained to be a valuable asset of the Order.” I felt a lump forming in my throat as I watched Hux’s face go even more pale that it normally was. I had narrowly escaped death by his hand only to be groomed by Ren for some odd reason. He wanted me as an asset to him. The new title only made more qustions arise than answers. If I were a ‘valuable asset’ now only after putting up a fight, then what did that make me before?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I accidentally added this chapter to another one of my stories. Oops.

The night before my wedding was yet another sleepless night. If I had to guess the total number of hours of sleep I had gotten during the few days I had spent on the Finalizer, I would have to say somewhere around 12. The previous days activities had spooked me so much that I was terrified of the Supreme Leader, now known as Ren, would come into my room and harm me somehow. Even more so, the thought of my husband coming to enact his revenge is really what kept me staring at my ceiling all night. By the time my new caretaker, a younger, burlier guy, was barging into my room, throwing my covers off of me and yanking me from my bed, I was sure I would die of a combination of my cold, severe lack of sleep, and unbridled fear.

The man looked as if he could lift me in the air above his head and snap me in half with his bare hands. The little old ladies constant empty smile had ticked me off before, but this man’s hardened, angry scowl that was on his face 100 percent of the time made me so uneasy. He said nothing to me, just threw me into the center of the room before rummaging through my bag and pulling out a clean set of underwear as well as my modest wedding dress. He shoved the articles of clothing into my hands and then politely turned around. By now I was so defeated, so exhausted, so ready to go back to my home that I simply dressed just like he wanted to. In my relentlessly tired mind I reasoned with myself: the sooner I got this dreadful wedding over the sooner I could get back to my planet, in my bed, in my castle.

My eyes felt dry and heavy as I fumbled with the dress. Twice I had put it on backward and once almost upside down. It was a short dress and almost all the same color, so I tried not to put myself down too much when I finally was able to situate myself inside of it. Normally I would have ravished a dress like this but today, when I was feeling misery from the tips of my hair to the ends of my toes, I just didn’t feel beautiful. I stood and stared at the back of the man’s bald head until he turned around and pointed at the bathroom, clearly an indication that I had to ready myself. By the time I was finished, standing in front of the angry looking man with brushed teeth, stuffy nose, and finger combed, half-assed hair, he beckoned me to follow him with his finger. It was time for my wedding, whether I wanted it or not.

 

I followed him throughout the halls, keeping my head down as I passed several disappointed looking people. My mood was tanking with each disgruntled expression that passed and I had no idea how I was going to be able to perform at my own wedding. Fearful thoughts swirled around in my head of passing out during the ceremony, or having a coughing fit so severe that I embarrassed everyone around me. The people of the First Order had proven to be cruel, if I didn’t perform exactly how they wanted me to I feared it would be the end of me.

We walked throughout the halls until a frantic young lady approached us. She rolled a large metal case behind her as her heels clicked loudly against the linoleum floor. “Is this her? Is this the bride?” She asked, coming to a rather jittery stop in front of us. The man nodded his head at her and her eyes finally met mine. She looked me up and down and then, just as everyone else had, flashed me a partially disgusted look before turning back to my new caretaker. “Can she speak Galactic Basic?” She asked him. I felt like I should have been insulted, that I should have spoken up for myself to correct her but I was too mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausted. No matter how hard I tried to present myself in a way that they would respect me, it wouldn’t work. And by now, right before my own wedding to one of their people, I knew there was no point in fighting for myself. Soon I’d be back at home with my own people, partying and having fun just like we do. Thoughts of Ellone managed to drown out the bickering going on about me until the suspiciously nervous lady snapped her fingers in front of my face. “Come on, we have to get you ready at once!” She said, speed walking ahead of me. I had no choice but to follow her.

She took me to a room that had a large mirror and a circular chair sitting in front of it. Around the mirror there were lights and all kinds of tools, brushes, and spray bottles that I had never seen before. “Have a seat, quickly.” She urged while parking the suitcase next to the chair. “Your wedding is in an hour and a half, I need to get your hair and makeup done stat!” I obeyed, sinking down in the chair even though I was nervous about what was about to happen. I had never been fond of makeup. The most I had ever had was a bit of pigmentation from various flowers on my eyelids and even that irritated me. And my hair? What kind of extravagant style would she put my hair into? I have had my hair ironed before, I’ve had it braided and in some stylish updos, but if they were planning on completely covering my face in makeup I could only assume they were planning something just as grand with my hair.

My neck was so sore by the end of the entire thing. My nose had run so much that the backs of my hands were covered in dried snot and the woman didn’t help me until she had sucked her teeth and threw a tissue into my lap. I stayed silent the entire time, even when she talked about how inconvenient my “thicker than average” hair was, or when she complained about having to mix foundation pigmentations because she just didn’t have one that was in my skin color. She poked and prodded my face, used a strange looking iron to curl my hair, and when she was done I hardly recognize myself in the mirror in front of me.

I could see no blemishes or beauty marks on my face, my eyebrows were pointed and sharp, not bushy and natural as they were before. My eyelashes were longer, blacker, and she had even added a wing of sorts to the edge of my eye. In fact, the lines around my eyes were even darker than normal, I looked almost like a raccoon. My eyelids were red melting into orange, like a perfect sunset while my lips were blood red like a ruby. I looked nothing like myself, and the fact that my hair was pulled out of my face, braided, strung with black and white pearls, and knotted at the base of my neck only made myself that much unrecognizable. By the time she was standing me up, shoving a bouquet of deep red roses into my hands and ushering me toward the door, I was failing at holding back my tears.

I was escorted to a large double door, the sounds of an organ coming through it meant this was officially it. When the doors opened I would be thrust into my new life as The General's wife, and there would be no going back. As the doors were opening the woman who readied me shoved a crown made of white velvet onto my head and flipped a white veil in front of my face. Giving me one last look she turned me toward the door as it creaked open, revealing a rather large audience where everyone in attendance stood and turned to look at me.

My stomach fell ten feet in my own body as the spotlight fell on me. Everyone had their eyes on me and I knew what I was expected to do, but my feet wouldn’t move. Especially after my eyes found my husband who was standing at the altar simply waiting for me. Along with him stood Supreme Leader Ren, his head free of his helmet he smiled at me as I became the center of attention. I found it to be amusing, the fact that this man was more excited to see me than my own husband. Remembering his newfound infatuation with me I felt the corner of my lip curl, but hardly had any time to think on such things when I felt a nudge in my back. The woman had pushed me into the church to try to hurry me along. I was moving too slow for her on my own wedding day.

There was no use putting it off any further, so instead I started the long walk down the aisle. I tried my best not to look Hux in the eye, to keep my eyes cast to the floor as to not disappoint myself. I had thought for sure my wedding would be more enjoyable, that I’d be married to someone I knew and loved and not someone who would cast me dirty looks from the altar. Victor immediately came to my mind, but he had already told me he wasn’t interested in marrying me. I could feel tears coming to my eyes once again as I thought to myself, why couldn’t it have been Victor?

It seemed like an eternity, but soon I was climbing the two stairs up to the stage that held the altar and took my place in front of Hux. He still wasn’t looking at me, instead he looked to Ren who was still smiling proudly at me. I couldn’t tell if he was smiling because he was admiring my beauty or if he was just happy to have me as an “asset,” but either way knowing that at least one person was happy to see me at my wedding made the process that much more bearable.

“Every member of the Order, I hereby introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Armitage Hux.” Ren said proudly, and everyone around us erupted in applause. My eyes went from Ren to Hux but he was still looking unamused. The deep scowl on his face told me that this was the angriest he had ever been. Clearly he had wanted this just as much as I did, and I was sure neither of us would be happy until this fiasco was over.

The Supreme Leader went on to make a huge speech over things that I just didn’t care about. The sanctity of the Order, Hux's bloodline being passed down, and that Ellone and the Order would become one. It was torture to hear all these things. The fact that I heard someone whisper something about the General marrying a savage as I walked down the aisle should have been proof enough that the only person that wanted these things was Ren, not even the Orders people accepted me for who I really was.

“And so now, we finalize this bond with a bit of tradition.” Ren said, and when I looked up at him he was smiling at Hux. “General, the veil?” He offered, holding his hand up to my face.

“Is this completely necessary?” Hux asked growling and looking past my head

“Of course it is, General. This is your wedding after all.” Ren replied snarkily. It was at this point I realized Ren took pleasure in torturing my husband and, even though I was a good person by nature, I realized I enjoyed his torment as well. I repressed a smile as I watched him huff, then flinched as he reached up and snatched the veil right off of my face and threw it behind him--the white crown following it to the floor. At that point even I was annoyed. If there was one thing that wasn’t necessary it was that. I looked back to Ren to silently ask if this ceremony were over, but he kept speaking. And what would come next would be something that horrified even me.

“Now, you may kiss your bride.” Ren said proudly, stepping away from us. I gasped, didn’t see the suggestion coming at all. Sure, traditional Ellone weddings featured kisses but these people hated me. Never did I think I’d be made to kiss this man, and I was more relieved than I should have been when Hux loudly rejected me in front of everyone.

“Are you mad? The woman is ill! I’m not going to allow her to infect me with whatever illnesses she harbors!” I rolled my eyes at him, at his panicked, angry face as he bargained with Ren on kissing me when I had a cold. I was pissed, so angry at his rejection that I felt I had to speak up for myself.

“Are  _you_ mad? You and your people are the ones who gave me this illness in the first place.” I snapped back, to which Hux looked at me clearly appalled. Around us people gasped, one person even whispered a quiet ‘oh my’ and Hux’s cheeks burned bright red. I grinned proudly at my ability to embarrass him in front of his own people, but he didn’t seem to feel the same way.

“Be quiet, woman.” He scolded me, causing me to take a cautionary step back.

“That’s enough.” Ren bellowed over the two of us and the rest of the terrified crowd. “Everyone is well aware that the two of you aren’t fond of each other. These catty comments are not welcome here in front of  _your_ audience.” He scolded, looking back and forth between us. My husband rolled his eyes at me then turned to walk away. I watched as his foot hovered over my crown momentarily, felt the need to jump after it when Ren held up his hand to stop Hux from walking away. “You are not going anywhere until you seal your marriage with a kiss to your bride, Hux.” Ren whispered. The two men stared daggers at each other. If looks could kill both of them would be dead, I was sure of it. “Now kiss her, before I force you to consummate this marriage in front of everyone before you, General.” The threat was enough to, once again, make Hux’s cheeks glow red. He stole an outraged look at me before fully turning away from Ren.

He started walking back to me and my heart began to flutter in my chest. Truth be told, I wouldn’t mind kissing the man. I had always thought he looked exotically pleasing, entirely handsome with a less than ideal personality. Had he been nicer, a more likable human being, I wouldn’t mind being married to him, but everything he had done to me otherwise had just pushed me away. To see him stomping toward me, knowing he was going to kiss me, almost made me faint. In fact, the kiss was so quick, so cold, and so detached that I didn’t even realize the man had kissed me until the audience started clapping. I sat there stunned, looking at him as he stomped down the aisle away from me. Was it official now? Was I now official Queen Hux of Ellone? I stood there awkwardly as people stared back at me, the only other person on the stage with me was Ren and I had completely forgotten about him until he placed a hand on my back.

“Very good.” He said to me. “Let’s get you settled and back to your home planet. You have some affairs to settle before we start our end of this business deal.” He started pushing me down the steps to the back of the church, where Hux had just gone.

“Business deal?” I whispered to him, still clutching the flowers to my chest while everyone looked on clapping for me.

“Yes. You had something that I want. And if Hux doesn’t want to work you to your full potential, then I surely will.” Ren’s hand came up over my bare shoulder and he squeezed me, almost as if he were assuring me that everything would be okay. As if he were telling me that there was one person on this ship that accepted me. It was just a shame that it wasn’t my own husband.

 

That very same evening I was made to march through the hallways of the Finalizer side by side with my husband. We were going home, back to Ellone where I could bond with my people once again. Of course, I wasn’t thinking of it at his home. It was  _my_ home. My planet, my castle, and my people. I didn’t care at the time that I had to share it with him, that it was now  _our_ home. I just wanted to go back, back to the familiarity I had grown up with. Back to what I knew instead of this alien culture where I just wasn’t accepted by anyone.

I was heading back in my wedding dress, and the cold halls of the Finalizer only made my homesickness even worse. The cold danced over my skin and created goosebumps on every inch. Looking down the length of my arms I realized that my skin was becoming pale. I missed the sun and the nutrients it provided me, the warmth that caressed me and made me feel loved. I was not born to exist on a ship in the middle of nowhere. I was sure that, if held on this planet indefinitely, I would not survive at all.

A deep growl from Hux drew my attention, and before I could look over I was dodging one of his long arms swinging toward my face. “Watch what you’re doing,  _husband.”_ I bit out as cruely as I could, but instead of reprimanding me or replying with another snide remark he took me by complete surprise. His face remained unchanged as his black coat fell from his shoulders, carefully bringing it over his back and thrusting it toward me. I flinched, stopped where I was and watched as the coat fell over my shoulders and over my body.

I hadn’t really taken the time to properly admire my new husband's height. It was painfully obvious how much taller he was than me with his coat strung over my shoulders. The very end of it touched the ground while the sleeves hung at my hips. I had never worn anything this big on me before. It was truly a surreal experience.

“What’s with this?” I asked him, almost feeling the need to throw it off of me. The warmth it provided was enough to get me to shimmy it further onto my body, pulling it around my neck and keeping it shut as well as I could. It was like a small slice of him, a hug from the sun that made me feel important. It was exactly what I needed, but why would Hux of all people feel the need to do something like this for me, a woman he hated so much?

“I can’t stand hearing your teeth chattering any longer.” He said before stomping off after the robots that were leading us. I looked on at him, I hadn’t ever seen him without this thing on and I was quite impressed. He was slender, he was well built and, for whatever reason, appeared to be more human when viewed in his regular clothes. It was like everything had changed in that one single moment and I could believe that the man I had married actually cared for me.

“Come along,  _wife.”_ He spoke, completely pulling me out of my good mood with the look of annoyance on his face. “I haven’t got all day.” I hurried after him, pulling the coat closed and picking up my pace in order to keep up with everyone else. It had turned out to be one good moment completely ruined by his anger, and I could only assume the rest of my life would be just like this. I sighed quietly to myself. It was not a lifetime I was looking forward to.

 

The ride back to Ellone was long and quite a bore. It would seem the last ride was higher in intensity and quicker in pace, but this one was slow and more the pace I was expecting for the first time around. The General sat in the seat next to me while the robot in the front steered the machine. I still thought of it as a monster, I was still afraid, and even though I had Hux’s coat wrapped around me keeping me warm and safe I still couldn’t stop my heart from hammering in my chest in fear.

“What, are you afraid to fly?” My husband asked me, laughing mockingly at my torment. I couldn’t find the nerve to look over at him as the stars, ships, and other planets passed me by. Instead I looked down at my hands which were concealed by the long black sleeved of the coat, coming up with enough of a response that would anger him just as his question had done to me.

“You would be too if you hadn’t been raised with technology all around you.” I laughed at my own joke, thinking of a small, redheaded child running his hands all over the control center where I had tried to kill Ren. He must have been spoiled living amongst all these things. Robots, ships, buttons, tablets. “Imagine if the power was cut, or if it all disappeared. How would you entertain yourself? How would you even survive?” I wasn’t looking for an answer, just for him to think.

“I haven’t always been surrounded by technology, you ignorant fool.” He spat back, rolling his eyes and looking down at the floor.”My life hasn’t always been this great, girl. Stop making such silly assumptions.”

“Great? You call this great?” I asked him, feigning shock and horror. “You have no sun, you have nothing natural! No grass, no trees, no fresh fruits or vegetables! You and your people live the most horrific lives I’ve ever witnessed. I surely do feel sorry for you.” I drove the final verbal nail in his coffin, completely contented to looking away and remaining silent for the rest of the trip until Hux violently took me by my jaw and turned me to face him.

“I will not sit here and listen to this kind of hate speech spoken against my way of living.” He seethed, an evil look bloomed in his eyes and I instantly felt like I was in danger. “You do not, nor will you ever, know how wonderful the Order is. Too busy prancing around half naked like a neanderthal in your primitive ways.” The leather dug into the skin of my jaw and I felt like if he squeezed any harder he’d snap my jaw into two. “I earned to be where I am now, I worked hard for it and you will never,  _never,_ understand what it’s like, you wicked little whore. Now I suggest you sit here, you keep your mouth shut, and you stop speaking on affairs you don’t understand. Or I will show you what kind of power I can exert over you.”

The man eased off of my jaw, placed his hands in his lap and sat forward. The message he relayed was loud and clear: he had the ability to hurt me if I continued to disrespect him and his culture. It was rich coming from him, really. From the people who, for several days, did nothing but make racist remarks about my skin and its color, my mannerisms, and my culture. However, looking at the bigger picture meant it was not with the threat he had bestowed upon me. For the rest of the ride back to Ellone I stayed quiet, I leaned my face into my palm, and I returned to being anxious. This was the man that I was to spend the rest of my life with, and he had just threatened me with physical abuse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is going to be soooooo lit.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's finally smut in this story!

Even though I was seated next to my monster of a husband, I still managed to drift off to sleep with my chin in my hand. I was entirely too uncomfortable but, after having to endure everything from being ripped from my slumber, my farce of a wedding, and threats from my husband, I could barely hold my eyes open. Once I finally allowed myself some rest it felt like it didn’t take long before I was being elbowed painfully in the side. I screeched, threw an angered look at him only to find his nose pointed down in his tablet device. “We are landing soon.” He spoke to me, flicking his fingers and making the screen roll under them. 

“Fantastic.” I moaned, unamused by the entire thing. At least while dreaming I could pretend I was away from him. But no, now that I was awake I was hyper-aware of Hux’s closeness to me. Our arms touched, our knees touched, and once I realized that our feet were nearly overlapping I was quick to move mine. Goosebumps broke out over my skin, touching him was the last thing I wanted to be doing. I tried my best to keep my disdain off of my face as I looked straight ahead, blaming the closeness on the fact that the monster ship was so small and cramped. Either way, it was still uncomfortable for me. I rubbed some more of the sleep out of my eyes and focused on what was straight ahead of me, and when I realized that we really were quickly approaching Ellone I was more than astounded.

In the window right in front of me was my planet. Ellone in all her lush, green, and watery glory stared back at me and instantly a chord was struck in my heart. It had struck me that this really was the first time I was seeing my planet from the outside. I was now officially an outsider looking in on my own planet--and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. 

A smile spread out over my face as the clouds around us broke and we quickly descended into the trees. The first thing that caught my attention was my castle. It was still standing tall and proud waiting for me. I sat straight up and leaned forward, beyond excited to see my home after so long. I could feel my large bed calling my name, could feel the familiar floors and dirt under my feet. It all excited me, and as soon as the ship stopped moving I was quick to release my harness and jump into the aisle toward the hatch. It felt like I couldn’t run to my home fast enough, and as soon as I was almost free of the First Order I found myself falling back into the ship.

I looked back to see Hux holding the back of my dress, angrily stepping after me with his usual scowl on his face. “Haven’t you ever heard of keeping up appearances?” He asked me, moving his hand from my back down to my wrist. “When we walk onto our planet, we are going to do so with elegance and grace.” I was feeling so homesick and so ready to be back in my territory that all I did was nod my head in agreeance with him. “We are  _ royalty,  _ you can’t just go running around like a caveperson as you normally do. We will walk, hand in hand, to our castle, and then you may run wild behind closed doors. But I will not have you embarrassing me in front of everyone here. I am to be respected, even if we aren’t fond of each other.” Hux spoke. My skin was crawling with the anticipation of getting back to my home, and try as I might I couldn’t bring myself to nod or speak to him. Instead I turned toward the hatch of the ship, walking with so much speed that I was practically leading Hux by the hand to my world.

The first thing that hit me was the smell of the warm Ellone air. This was the air I had dreamed of, the air I was raised with and it surrounded me like a welcoming hug. I closed my eyes and took in the scent of the air, could smell the salty air of the nearby sea, the fresh scent of the trees, grass, and rivers that flowed around the castle. I was back home, surrounded by anything and everything I needed to live and it was the most wonderful feeling ever. 

My eyes came to rest on my castle in all of her tall, stone glory and my heart instantly lept in my chest. Without even looking back at my husband I started sprinting toward my home only to be pulled back to him. “ _ Compose  _ yourself, girl.” Hux said to me, his face turning red before my very eyes. His lack of joy upon being placed on my/our planet saddened me, and it was clear he wasn’t going to let me enjoy my reunion with my people. For the first time since we had landed my emotions switched from joyous to angry. I felt as if I could turn to tears at his refusal to allow me to enjoy myself, and this time I couldn’t let it go.

“You’re real miserable.” I said to him, pulling my hand out of his grasp and stepping away. “This is where I was born, this is where I’ve lived my entire life. You’re not going to stop me from enjoying myself!” Hux bared his teeth as he lunged after me, but I guess he was not used to the floor of the woods where we stood because I was much quicker than him.

As I ran toward the castle I kicked off the horrible high heels I was made to wear for my forced weeding, and once my feet made contact with the damp dirt of the forest I knew I was home. I didn’t look back as I ripped every tie and braid from my hair and let it fall freely down my back, tried my best to rip my dress off but found no luck. I gave up as soon as my bare feet made contact with the concrete steps, because at that point it didn’t matter. I was finally back where I belonged, and the bad memories that the dress carried quickly left as I threw the doors to my castle open and came face to face with something I was never expecting to see.

“Welcome home, my Queen!” The collective voices of my people spoke in succession. Sitting in front of me was a large group of my people: my maids, my cooks, my advisors, and some of my citizens. Their familiar, brown faces stared back happily at me with hefty smiles, and these included Aurine, Vekis, and Victor all in the front row. 

“Aurine!” I shouted, running frantically toward her and opening my arms wide. She ran into me, almost causing us to fall to the floor, and held me tightly. I could feel tears forming in my eyes as I rested my head against her shoulder and felt her fingernails digging slightly into my back. “My best friend, oh how I've missed you!” I whispered to her, and it was true. Next to Victor Aurine was the second person I missed the most. 

“Queenie, you’ve been gone far too long.” Aurine said as she pulled away from me. In her eyes were the happiest of tears, tears that she reached up and wiped away. Aurine was never one to show much emotion between the two of us--the fact that she was openly crying meant a lot to me. “Please don’t tell me those Outsiders have changed you too much. You’re still our beloved Queen, right?” 

“Of course, Aurine.” I smiled at her, taking her hands in mine and squeezing them tight. In that moment I knew I never wanted to be separated from her, or Victor, or any of my people ever again. Just as I was about to gush about what an awful time I had there was a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw Victor smiling proudly at me, encircling my body with his long arms. 

“Welcome back, my Queen.” He said quietly, squeezing me closer to him in a hug. 

“Victor.” I said to him cordially. I was both surprised and disappointed at the incredible awkwardness that existed between us, even with our good friend Aurine not too far away. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that the last time I saw him he had forced me into the small ship, picked me up and gave me no other choice but to comply with the Outsiders that were taking me away. 

“I’m sure you’re happy to be home?” He asked, and the hesitation immediately fell from my shoulders. 

“Sure am. I missed home so much. I missed you, I missed everyone.” I found myself getting flustered pretty quickly. The closeness of his body, his protective arm wrapped around me, it all created such lustful feelings inside of me and I couldn’t help but to swing my arms around his neck. “Did you miss me?” I asked him, smiling as lovingly as possible. Normally an action like this would bring on such intimate feelings, I was expecting Victor to drop his hands to my hips and pull me closer to him, maybe even kiss me. 

But not today. Victor took me by complete surprise. “I see that you didn’t see my note?” He mulled before reaching behind him and pulling my hands from the back of his neck. At first I had no idea what he was talking about, but the nervous grin he flashed over my head told me exactly what he was talking about. 

I turned around and found my rather angry looking husband. “What’s all this?” He asked us after coming to a complete, intimidating stop. “I told this little whore to never set foot in my castle again, what is she doing here?” I stepped away from Hux and more toward Aurine in a weak attempt at guarding her from his wrath. He would have to go through me first if he wanted to hurt her, I would never allow such a thing after being separated from her for so long. 

“King Hux, welcome back to Ellone.” Victor said, stepping up to Hux. They were around the same height but it would seem Victor topped Hux in muscle. If a fight were to break out I was sure Victor would be triumphant, if not for the robots that accompanied Hux at all times. “We on Ellone pride ourselves on our accomplishments, and we like to celebrate everything that we can. When word got out that our Queen would be marrying, arrangements were immediately made for a large celebration at our castle.” The two men stared wordlessly at one another, Hux didn’t seem to be amused. “So we have traditional food, music, and dances to celebrate your integration into our planet.” A smile finally broke over Victor’s face, as if he were inviting him peacefully into our society. I ducked my head to Aurine and tried my best to hold back my giggles. I knew my people, and none of them were excited to have him. It didn’t matter if I had to marry him, he was an  _ Outsider.  _ Not a single soul on Ellone trusted Outsiders.

“I am not interested in such things. I’ve been traveling and I’m tired, I want to rest.” Hux said, his tone full of power and authority. “Take me to my bedroom at once!” His loud voice echoed off of the walls around us and everyone was quiet. I could see some people stepping away from him in the crowd and, once again, I found myself backing both Aurine and I away. The color ran out of Victor’s cheeks for just a second before turning and heading out of the foyer uttering a quick ‘At once, King Hux’ after him. Everyone’s eyes were on the angry, read headed outsider that was stomping away from them, and when they were both gone not a single thing could be heard.

“Definitely not an Ellonian.” Aurine said stepping around me.

“More for us, for sure.” I said, breaking the tension all around us. “Come on, let’s go have a party. Ellone style, just like your wedding.” I said, taking Aurine by the hand. I heard her sly giggle as she walked quickly after me to the gardens. After spending all that time cooped up on a ship in the middle of the galaxy, I was ready to reclaim my Ellonian nature and party all of my worries away.

 

Being surrounded by my people with their high energy, their laughter, their smiles, and our loud music was like therapy to me. I was still sick with this cold on our way back home, but when I was drunk, my belly full of our food and my ears full of our music, it felt as if I had no cares in the world. I danced between Aurine and Vekis, Victor but my husband was nowhere in sight; I didn’t care at all. I drunk, I danced, and I sang to my heart's content, well until the sun came down and the moon shone above us. 

Everyone had slowed down, even Aurine and I took to sitting on the fountain sipping on a shared bottle of alcohol and drunkenly discussing our woes. She had told me while I was gone people had gone into a panic, worried that if we did get a new ruler it would be only an outsider. It hurt the rice business for a few days but it eventually came back up. She and Vekis didn’t have to worry too much now that I was back home. I told her all about my time on the ship as best as I could while slurring my words around in my mouth, but eventually I grew tired. My stomach was churning from the alcohol and I felt like I had officially hit my limit. I alerted one of the nearby guards and explained my situation, politely asked for someone to escort Aurine and Vekis home safely while I was escorted to my room. I had always been able to keep my alcohol well and was able to clearly make out the “as you wish, my Queen” the guard said, and afterword I bid Aurine a good night before waddling after him to my bedchamber. With the First Order stomping around I didn’t trust myself to go anywhere alone, especially not as drunk as I was. 

We eventually made it with me sniffling and swaying back and forth behind him. I was happy of the fact that I could still walk, but still felt like I was pushing it. More alcohol for the rest of the night would not be good and I was sure to wake with a nasty hangover already. I opened the door to my bedchamber and bid the guard goodnight with a smile, then gently closed the door behind him.

When I turned around I thought I was hallucinating. I wasn’t sure that I could trust what I was seeing, the large lump on the other side of my bed was suspicious. I tried to tell myself that I was drunk enough to mistake a pile of pillows and blankets as a person sitting at the end of my bed, but as I staggered closer I realized that I was wrong. At the end of my bed, facing toward the window, sat a person, and from the blurred flash of orange on their head there was no mistaking who it was.

“What are you doing in my--my room?” I slurred, stumbling onto my bed and directly confronting him. I watched him turn around, couldn’t clearly see his face but what I could see was the tall red bottle in his hand.

“Your room?” He asked, jumping up from the bed and stepping away from me. It was as if he thought I was a vermin in my own bed, wanting to keep me as far away from him as possible. “This is my room, you delusional, delu…” He stuttered, dropping the bottle and sending it crashing onto the floor. I looked at his feet and almost tumbled down to the stone floor with it, but managed to sit myself up just in time to hear him call me a delusional wench. What a sad, sad man. It was too bad that I became overconfident when I was drunk, because in that moment all of the rage that I was harboring inside of me chose to blossom in the form of an enraged howl, followed closely by me getting up on my feet and rushing at him. 

I’m sure it looked hilarious to someone that wasn’t drunk off of their ass like us two, but to me it was serious. He was dressed in nothing but his underwear, a detail I didn’t have much time to dwell on before I was grasping his shoulders and shaking him as best as I could. “In--insufferable! Asshole! I hate you so--so  _ fucking  _ much!” To my horror he said nothing, in fact he started falling toward me. The fact that his balance and mine were both skewed shouldn’t have surprised me, but I was only just able to get out of the way of his massive body at the last second. He fell face first into the bed and looked beyond pathetic. My eyes swept down his back to his black boxer briefs, the man did have quite a nice ass but I was still too angry to even dwell on such a thing.

Instead I took him by his shoulder and rolled him over so that he was facing me. His eyes were bloodshot and his face was wet. If I didn’t know any better I would say he had been crying while drinking his bottle of whatever, but again, I was concentrating all of my energy into my rage. I shuffled my way up onto the bed on top of him, straddling his torso while his knees dangled over the edge of the bed. What a fucking loser, the way he was sitting there up under me shaking and sniffling like a terrified child. In my drunk mind I had assumed that he recognized my power and was submitting to me, an assumption that only fueled my need for revenge even more.

I reached down for his face and squeezed his bony cheeks within my hand. It would seem like Hux had finally got some of his right mind back as one of his hands came up to encircle mine. I threw him off of me and reached for both of his hands, leaned forward and placed them above his head. “Don’t you fucking touch me, you disgusting Outsider.” I said, of course not realizing that our bodies were connected at his hips. It wasn’t important, but what was were his wrists that were pinned above his head, just begging to be tied together. 

I fumbled around on top of him, feeling my way around until my hand made contact with a black cloth that was sitting right next to him. I flopped down off of him and gripped the cloth, turning it around in my hands until I was certain I had at least one end in each hand. It was on the thicker side and smelled of sweat, I could only assume it was his shirt from the day. It was no bother, I could tie knots with almost anything.

The matter proved to be more daunting than I thought, particularly because I was drunk and felt like I had no control over my fingers. Regardless, I still slipped the shirt over his hands and knotted it to be best of my ability, all while trying to hold my balance above him. When I was satisfied with his hands being tied I took another look down at him. It shocked me to see that he barely even put up a fight, and in my drunken state I could have sworn his face had switched from holding animosity to one of wanton need. I shook it off, placing my fingers on his jaw again. I was sure that my eyes were playing tricks on me because this man hated me, and he made it known every chance he got that he couldn’t stand me. The begging in his eyes, the small pout over his lip, they were not real. But that wouldn’t stop me from teaching him a lesson about treating me worse than the dirt that existed beneath his boots.

“Remember, what you said at the...the…” I spoke, trying to jog my own memory over exactly what he said about me being sick. For the life of me I couldn't recall it, I could only remember that he had made a snide comment about an illness his people had given me. My throat was still scratchy and being so drunk it was already hard enough for me to speak, so instead of wracking my brain to finish my sentence I went with an action that was very ill thought out and for sure would have gotten me in so much trouble if we had both been sober.

I took his cheeks in my hands once again and through my blurred vision took aim for his mouth. My lips puckered as I built up the heftiest, most disgusting wad of saliva from the back of my throat and, once I was completely satisfied I parted my lips and allowed the clear and white glob to fall inch by inch toward his mouth. Hux had a horrified expression on his face as he started to realize what was happening, and before my stringy saliva broken he managed to push me away from him. Unluckily for him the sudden movement only broke the spit and sent it plummeting toward his face, spattering loudly against his pink, plush lips. The most disgusted sound came from his mouth as he mustered up enough strength to finally throw me off of him.

“You nasty, loathsome, wretched little whore!” I managed to land in a squatting position, only slightly rocking to restore my equilibrium back to normal. Above me I watched Hux’s body sway back and forth as he sat up, realizing that the restraint I had tied around his wrists had come loose. I should have known that the knot I tied was too weak, although it only caused even more conflicting thoughts to cloud in my head. To see him in my bed, sitting and wiping my spit off of his face enraged me more than anything. He had thrown me out of my own bed like I didn’t belong here, and this was the house I was born in! It was clear that doing such absurd and unsanitary things to him elicited the type of shocked reaction I wanted from him, and in order to teach him a lesson I would have to step it up as far as I could go.

I sat up on my knees and took ahold of his large foot, not thoroughly thinking my actions through as I bent forward and placed the flat of my tongue on the top of his foot. At the time I wasn’t thinking about his heavy boots and how badly his foot must have been sweating inside of it, or where his foot had been before I put my tongue on it. The only thing I was thinking of was the fact that he was afraid of my native Ellone germs and the disease he had handed to me on a silver platter. If I could get him sick I would rule him, and thus that became my number one priority. 

Keeping a tight hold on his leg I let my head rise so that my tongue could run over his ankle and onto his leg, over the light blonde hairs that sprouted from his skin. I had never in my life seen hair this light, in fact I hadn’t seen it at all until my tongue made contact with it. I went up over his knee, up his thigh where I momentarily stood to push him back onto the bed. It was then I noticed that he had gone completely quiet. The moment my eyes made contact with his pale, shocked face, I had sobered up quite a bit. He no longer looked so appalled by my actions, instead he had a look of need. I placed my palms upon his chest and pushed him back, slinked my body down to the top of his underwear and began running my tongue up his belly, to his breast bone where I had to stop and readjust myself on the bed. I planted my hips unapologetically upon his, and once I sat I realized that there was something amiss.

His body had warmed and his cheeks were blushing, and below me I could feel something poking my sex. It took me a few seconds to conclude that he was turned on by this, and I had never been more disgusted in my life. 

“You nasty, nasty Outsider.” I whispered before bending at my waist and dropping my mouth to his neck to run my tongue along his hot, flustered flesh. My inhibited thoughts fed me bad ideas left and right, and one of them was the thought that he was  _ my  _ husband. He was mine, he belonged to me just as I belonged to him. This was my man, and I could mark him up however I wanted to. With one last flick of my tongue I parted my lips and took a piece of his neck between my teeth and unapologetically clamped down on it. His howels did things to me, the small jolt I felt below me told me I had accomplished my goal of making him squirm. And what was even better? He wasn’t throwing me off and I could feel his cock hardening even more. He was into this, and fortunately for him, so was I.

I kissed my way around different areas of his neck, sucking on him, biting him, and leaving marks where I wanted to. I could hear him stuttering below me, wiggling to free himself and once I got tired I finally granted him his wish. I sat myself up, straddling him and proudly observing my handiwork in the form of dark purple bruises on his neck. He would be feeling that tomorrow, that was for sure. 

“You, you fucking savage woman.” Hux whispered to me. It was an obvious effort to cover the fact that he wanted this. He leaned his head back and forth to give me access to his neck, he moaned and groaned as I sucked color into his white skin, and when I fully sat up his hands gripped my hips as if to tell me never to let him go.

“Savage? You think I’m savage?” I asked as I let my body drop to him once again, fully intending to lick my way back down. “I would say the savage one is the man who can’t keep his arousal tamed for a woman he claims to hate.” With that I dropped my lips to his breast bone, going straight down his chest and leaving hickeys in my wake. My hands went down both sides of his chest until I came to his nipple, and to add sweet insult to his sexual injury I took one of them in between my fingers. They were small, hard, and just begging for my attention. I squeezed it a little harder, leaning up and giggled when I saw the torment on his face.

His mouth had fallen open and a wanton moan fell from between his lips. He seemed to sober up too, he even grasped my hand and pulled it away from his reddening nipple. “Please, don’t.” He said, his eyes roaming all over my body before settling on my face. “Please, you’ll make me…” He whimpered, clearly too embarrassed to admit that what I was doing was turning him on.

“Pathetic.” I said to him, obeying his shy wishes and removing my hands from his torso. He sat up and held his hands at my hips, and by now both of us were thoroughly turned on. It had been a while since I had been intimate with a man and even I was feeling horny after all the foreplay that I had initiated. I felt like I needed some stimulation, and if there was one thing that would get me what I wanted from him, it was going to be my mouth.

I dropped into a squat and immediately reached for the hole in his underwear. It took no time to move the cloth around and expose his length, and I’d have to say, he was impressive. He had Victor beat by at least two inches, and unlike Victor Hux was missing the extra skin around his head. It was a strange sight, and I had to wonder why his cock would look like this, but it didn’t matter to me. A cock was a cock all the same, and I was sure it would fit no differently in my mouth. 

I spat on him, and as soon as it made contact with the head I started to stroke him. I didn’t think he could get harder than he was, but the man grew in my hand. I watched as a large blue vein that snaked around his shaft pulsated with the beat of his heart. He was ready and he wasn’t saying anything to stop me. With a smile on my face I lowered my head and opened my mouth wide, allowing his entire cock to run over my tongue and all the way to the back of my throat. 

I felt Hux go stiff, could hear a stifled moan come from his throat while I positioned myself to take even more of him. I giggled when his hand flew into my hair as if he tried to push me down further, but that was hardly the case. His fingers tangled into my undone hair and pulled me all the way off of him, and once his cock was free of my mouth I gripped him and stroked him once again. “What’s the matter?” I asked, cocking my head to the side as innocently as I could. “A savage can’t use her germ infested mouth on the big, bad General Hux?”

“Why are you doing this?” He slurred, it only made me laugh. 

“Because you think I’m dirty, but here you were enjoying every second.” His mouth was still agape and he was still panting. I continued to stroke him, looking up to him for consent at the same time. If he really didn’t want this from me I wouldn’t do it, consent was key on Ellone and rapists were put to death once proven guilty. He stared down at me as I held him in my hand, and the only cue I needed to continue was the feeling of his hand pushing me back toward the weeping head of his cock. I was determined to show him the time of his life. 

Even though I knew he had freed his hands from the cloth I came to enjoy his freedom, his hands in my hair encouraged me to take even more of him. Tying Victor up had always been one of my favorite things, but obviously now was different. Perhaps tying him up would have to wait for later, because the contact I was making only turned me on even more. As I bobbed my head up and down, savoring the flavor of his cock for everything that it was worth as was held tight to my hair. My inhibition made me have absolutely no regrets, but in the back of my mind I knew that, come tomorrow morning, my mind would probably change. But it didn’t matter, because I was living for the man’s vocal pleasure that I was giving him.

He was twitching, groaning in pleasure and I knew he wouldn’t last too much longer. I was feeling mean, still planning on punishing him I quickly came off of his cock and started to stand to my feet. In one swift movement my panties hit the floor of my bedchamber and I climbed into his lap, placed my hands on his pecs and pushed him onto my bed. “No, I won’t allow you to be the only one who gets off tonight.” I said as I carefully lined myself up with him. I was determined to at least gain some pleasure from this drunk interaction. Hux didn’t deserve any of what I was giving him, but at this point it wasn’t about him. I was so horny from performing oral sex on him that I felt like I deserved some fun too. 

So I sunk onto his cock, and the feeling of finally getting some sexual stimulation of my own caused me to moan out loud. Hux’s freed hands went to my hips as he tried to pull me down further, but I wouldn’t have it. Instead I lifted myself up, sliding my wetness along him and succeeding in making his eyes roll and making him yell my name. It echoed off the stone walls of my bedchamber and was music to my ears. “Yeah, you like that, you savage Outsider?” I asked him, grinning as a I sunk slowly back down on him. It amazed me how he came so unraveled, how he was once scolding me a few hours ago but was now submitting to my sexual dominance. He was pathetic, a sad, drunk, horny man. 

“You fucking Outsider. You come into my planet, take my throne, and think you can talk to me any kind of way? Who rules you right now? Who’s ruling you in bed?” I asked as I picked up my pace. I watched as he threw his head back in ecstasy, and without missing a beat he cried “you!” It made me feel things, to know that I was in charge sent waves upon waves of pleasure throughout my body. “I’m going to ruin you, white man.” I growled, chasing my orgasm as hard as I could. I shut my eyes as I could feel it, if I just concentrated hard enough on the man I was controlling, if I could just continue snapping my hips up at this same pace, I would cum. I grit my teeth, it felt like I was within seconds of orgasming when suddenly Hux’s body became suspiciously still.

I opened my eyes just as my center began to fill with warm, wet, cum. I stopped moving as Hux sat whimpering below me, grasping impossibly tight to my hips and I realized that I wouldn’t be cumming tonight. 

I let out a growl as I lifted myself from his cock and, just as I suspected, his white seed began to seep out of me. “Worthless piece of garbage.” I said to him as I slid off of his lap, making sure to leave as much of a mess as I could behind me. I could hear him panting as he shuffled around the bed, looked over to find him propping himself up straight with his arms. I was sober enough to recognize the black shirt I had tied his hands up with sitting right under his hand. “Worthless.” I mumbled, finally coming to the realization that he wiggled out of his confine. I snatched the shirt from under his hand and tucked it underneath my wedding dress to wipe myself clean. “Can’t even control yourself to allow your wife to finish. So worthless.” I moaned, but he said nothing in reply. 

I tossed the shirt at him, walking around the bed to the side that was less occupied by his massive body. This was my own bed that I didn’t want to share, but I was far too exhausted to try and fight him out of it. Instead I angrily pushed the straps of my dress down and stepped out of it, doing the same for my bra as well. I was too frustrated to search for my sleeping clothes so instead I plopped myself down into my bed, ignoring Hux as he seemed to be adjusting himself next to me.

“What did you just do to me, you wench?” Hux asked, and I giggled as I realized he was likely sobering up too. Before lying back I leaned over my bedside table to blow out the candle that had kept the room barely illuminated. 

“Nothing, _ husband.”  _ I sneered, positioning myself snuggly under the covers. “Now you can either lay down and share a bed with me or find somewhere else to sleep. This is  _ my  _ bedchamber, and I’m not leaving.” I shut my eyes as I felt a headache overcoming me, the sex had definitely sobered me up and I realized what being back on Ellone meant for me. Loneliness, inadequacy, and failure. The only change was I was married to a man that didn’t actually love me. As Hux lay down next to me my heart grew heavy. By all means I should have been happy, to know that I was married and would be spending the rest of my life with someone, but I just couldn’t be. Bringing Hux back home meant I wouldn’t be the only one subjected to his torture, and that only made my anxiety skyrocket there in my own bed. 


	10. Chapter 10

“What in the devil is this?!”

I was jarred awake by the sound of Hux’s voice echoing off the walls of my bathroom. I opened my eyes and turned my head to see Hux bent over the sink, completely nude and running his fingers over the many, many bite marks and hickies I had painted into his skin. I laughed at him, stretching my arms over my head as I recalled the night we shared together. It really was insane, the way his pale skin bruised so easily. I turned back over to reach for a cup of water that was left on my nightstand, but before I even touched the glass I was flinching as my warm, comfortable blanket was ripped from my body. 

I turned over onto my back, took in Hux’s disturbed look as he wrapped my blanket around his waist to conceal his body from me. I said nothing as his eyes swept over my skin, stopping at my breasts as he admired them for a hot minute before turning away from me in disgust. It was a bore, really. The act of being disgusted by my body that he was screaming at and wholeheartedly enjoying last night was in such poor taste; I was hoping we’d be able to skip all of this and go back to simply ignoring each other.

“You disgusting whore! What have you done--” He spoke, pointing at one of the red and puffy bite marks on his collar bone.

“Drop the tough guy act, husband.” I said, sitting up and looking at him straight in his eyes. “You were drunk, you know you wanted it from me. Don’t try to downplay it.”

“I haven’t the slightest idea of what you’re talking about. I don’t even remember falling asleep in the same bed as you!” I chuckled at him and his feigning ignorance. Truth be told, the man was very sexy standing here concealing his body from me. It turned me on more than I was willing to admit, and my body chose that moment to remind me that I was the one who didn’t reach orgasm last night. 

I had never been shy about my nudity, and even if I wasn’t going to get what I wanted I thought making the red-haired man even more uncomfortable would bring me joy. I leaned back on my arms and spread my legs ever so slowly, grinning as I watched his face light up bright red. “How about another round? You owe me, you know. You got to finish last night and I didn’t.” The General stared down at my sex, I couldn’t help but to wish he would indulge himself inside of me one more time this morning. I was up for another round of sex after last nights activities, and with the hangover I was experiencing there wasn’t much else I could do.

The way his eyes darted between my face, my body, and my sex made me think he was actually going to fuck me again. His face was bright red and I could see the struggle in his eyes, and I was certainly hopeful until my vision was suddenly obstructed by the blanket that he was concealing himself with.

“You disgust me.” I heard him say before I could pull the blanket off of my head. I was annoyed with his defiant behavior but really couldn’t expect any less from an Outsider. When I had finally freed myself I managed to catch a glimpse of his backside hurrying into my bathroom, slamming the door in his wake. I was alone, left rolling my eyes at the man who desperately wanted to forget about the night we shared together.

 

I could hear him rummaging about in my bathroom, the shower running for a few minutes before abruptly stopping. I rolled my eyes at the man as I got up to dress, listened to the sound of the water running from the sink as he brushed his teeth and did whatever else he felt he had to. When I was fully dressed, sprawled out on the bed and waiting for my breakfast to be delivered, the door to the bathroom finally opened and out strutted Hux. He had my red towel wrapped around his midsection, showed off his damp hair and well toned muscles that I wasn’t sober enough to fully admire last night. His eyes met mine for just a second before sneering at me and crossing the room to my closet, which I was horrified to find had been filled with his mundane black wardrobe. I rolled my eyes as he shut the door behind him, because who would have thought the man I married and had a round of drunken sex with would claim his modesty in my own closet? This was so stupid. 

So I sat, I sat on my bed and I awaited my food quietly. I knew there was no way he was going to dine with me. I didn’t want him to kick me out of my own room so he could dine alone, so my hope was that my first meal would come before he managed to assemble himself in his impractical heavy clothing. That way if he didn’t want to eat near me he would have to leave the bedroom, not me.

Unfortunately, my wish didn’t come true. The closet door swung open and in strode my husband dressed in his thick black clothing and tall black boots. He had a look of utmost seriousness and urgency on his face as he stepped up to the foot of the bed, stood with his hands crossed behind his back as if he was going to command me like an army. I sat up, stared at him simply waiting for whatever nonsense was about to come spewing out of his mouth, even though I knew I wasn’t going to like it--whatever it may be.

“That spot on your thigh, is it what I believe it to be?” He asked, and I was momentarily confused. I looked down at my bare thighs, spreading my legs and eyeballing my skin but I didn’t know what he was talking about. The man let out an angered sigh before stepping up to me, placing his hand on my knee and spreading my leg even wider. I leaned back, trying to get away from him before he shoved his fingers under the seam of my shorts and pulled it up, exposing a now crusted spot of semen on the area where my thigh met my hip, too close for comfort to my sex. “This, what is this?” He asked, and I absolutely could not hold back my laughter. 

“What does it look like, genius?” I asked, yanking my leg out of his grip and crossing them in front of me. “Whether you like it or not,  _ you  _ willingly had sex with  _ me  _ last night. You filled me with your seed and you didn’t let me cum either. Like I said, you owe me.” There was a threat in my voice as I furrowed my brows. In reality it really didn’t matter to me if Hux allowed me to orgasm or not. It was entertaining to know that he was so worried about the sex we had, and really I just enjoyed torturing him about it. He lifted a gloved finger in the air between us in warning before speaking to me once again, trying his hardest to intimidate me.

“What happened last night might have been consensual, but it was  _ only  _ because I was inebriated.” He waved his finger in my face before retracting it back behind his back and continuing his speech. “I don’t care about what happened, I don’t care what was said, what we did, or what happened afterword, but it is not going to happen again. Am I understood?” He spoke as if he were my father, my guardian who made up the rules and regulations. I sighed, rolled my eyes at him before leaning back and propping myself up on my arms.

“Sure. Whatever you say, husband.” I said, resigning the thought from my mind. Sex with the man was great and fun, but it wasn’t as if I could force him into the act if he didn’t want it. Besides, there was always Victor.

“I’ll have an emergency contraceptive delivered to you this afternoon. I expect you to take it as soon as you get it in order to prevent any unwanted repercussions.” He suggested, but I hardly understood a word that came from his mouth. 

“What are you talking about?” I asked him, biting back the urge to roll my eyes.

“Are you an imbecile as well, woman?” He asked with a hefty sigh, and I guess my look of confusion angered him even more. “Are you ignorant of your own reproductive system as well? I do not wish for my DNA to be mixed with yours. I do not wish for a cluster of cells to form inside of you that my bodily fluids helped create. I’m trying to do everything in my power to prevent this, and a good place to start is with the First Order issued emergency contraceptive.” It enraged me that he went out of his way to describe to me how babies were made, and it enraged me even more to know that he didn’t trust me with the knowledge of my own body. I followed my menstrual cycle, I knew when it was safe to have sex and when it wasn’t. If I had any worries that I were to conceive his child I wouldn’t have mounted him and fucked him silly, and if I were to have found myself in that situation regardless I knew what I had to do in order to fix it. It was insulting, and if he thought I would be taking any kind of medication he offered me from his organization then he has officially lost his mind.

“You are ridiculous, Outsider.” I spoke, sitting up as courageous as I could. “I know the risks I took in fucking you last night, and I’m sure you did too or you wouldn’t have allowed any of it to happen!”

“I was drunk, out of my mind on this strange stuff that you call alcohol on this planet. Of course I didn’t know what I was doing.”

“Well that's none of my concern. Because I’m responsible enough to know that the likelihood of me getting pregnant with your child is slim to none. I’m not taking any magic medication you give me and there’s nothing you can do or say to change that. If I suspect something is wrong I have ways of fixing such things, but I will  _ not  _ do it your way!” I watched as the man’s face grew red, his skin was translucent enough and I was able to see a purple vein popping out from the side of his neck. I had never seen him this angry, and I’d be lying if I said this anger didn’t scare me a little more than it usually did.

“You foolish, hard-headed, disrespectful little bitch!” He shouted, lunging toward me, grasping me by the shirt and lifting me to his face. “You clearly don’t understand what I’m saying. I’m not giving you any other option, you  _ will  _ accept the pill. You  _ will  _ swallow it, and you  _ will  _ report to me, your husband, your  _ authority,  _ when you have.” He spoke between his clenched teeth. I had never felt more threatened before in my life, especially when he mentioned that he was my ‘authority.’ Just what the hell did that mean? I was the  _ Queen  _ of this planet for heaven’s sake! I had no authority to answer to and, as far as I was concerned, we were on the same playing field. In fact, I considered myself to be above him because I was native to this planet, not him! A fire was alive and dancing inside of me, encouraging me to fight back and I couldn't ignore what I was meant to do. I fought back with my words, as best as I could with an enraged man holding me by the front of my shirt.

“You don’t own my body, Outsider.” I growled, reaching up and throwing him off of me with a hefty shove. “You don’t tell me what I can and can’t do with medication that I’ve never taken in my life. If you want me to assure you that I’m not pregnant, then I will do it my way. But don’t you ever,  _ ever,  _ tell me that I have to follow your rules. You are on  _ my  _ planet, and I will do things  _ my  _ way.”

A knock at the door drew our attention to it, and one other than Victor strode happily into the battlefield that was my bedchamber. “Good morning my King, my Queen.” Victor said before bowing as he always did. In his hand sat one large tray with a silver platter cover, and it would seem he was the only happy person between all three of us.

“Sir Victor,” Hux spoke with the same hardened expression on his face as he fell away from me and my bed. “Good day, how are you?”

“Very well, King Hux.” Victor said as he placed the tray down on my small dining table. Hux had created such a foul mood within me that I didn’t even bother greeting Victor. It was clear that he and my husband were buddy-buddy now. There was no room for me in their relationship.

“Here is your morning meal, my King and my Queen. Made fresh just minutes ago from the kitchen.” Victor placed his hands behind his back as he stepped away from the table, but Hux just stared down at the food. I took it as my opportunity to start eating before Hux could kick me out. 

“Congratulations once more on your marriage, you two. Today, I come with a light suggestion.” I had just sat down at the table and lifted the top to the platter as Victor went onto explain what this ‘suggestion’ was. Breakfast on the first official day of my married life was simple enough: cooked oats with a bit of sugar and fresh honey on the side, a bowl of my planets native fruit, and two strips of bacon. Both plates mirrored each other along with two glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice. I was thoroughly disappointed, but could only assume that they were toning down our tastes as to help my Outsider husband acclimate to his new culture. 

“It’s no doubt that our people are quite concerned about their new King. I’m sure you understand, King Hux. What with you being an--”

“Let’s get on with it, Sir Victor.” My husband rudely cut Victor off. I rolled my eyes, wondering how I was going to be able to survive the rest of my life tethered to this man. 

“At once, my King.” Victor said as quickly as he could. I was hurt that I wasn’t involved in this conversation. Victor used to be my lover, a man that I could tell my deepest, darkest secrets to, and he couldn’t even look at me when talking to a man that he wanted dead just as I did. “I was just trying to say, you two need to ease your people’s concerns. They’re nervous, untrusting of the new King and I believe it would be beneficial if the two of you went out in public to ease their concerns.”

“What does being in public have to do with my people’s concerns?” I finally spoke up, effectively inserting myself into the conversation. But the two men seemed to not care. Victor had turned to look at me for a second before turning back to Hux and answering my question to him instead of me.

“Well, if they see their beloved Queen out and about enjoying her life with their new King, don’t you think that would ease some uncertainty amongst the people?” I lifted a brow at Victor and then looked over at Hux, whom I found looking over at me. 

“The concerns of the people are of none of my concern at the moment, Sir Victor. You will have to forgive me.” Hux said as smugly as he could, turning his nose up into the air.

“Well then what  _ are  _ your concerns, Outsider?” I butted in again, demanding answers. I was still Queen of this planet and my people’s wellbeing was my number one priority. If he didn’t have my people’s best interests in mind then he had no business sitting beside me on the throne.

“My Queen, my King!” Victor stepped in, holding his hands out in front of both of us before I could speak back to him. “Please, now is not the time for such bickering. Let’s take a moment to calm down, to worry about these matters some other time. These differences can be resolved, but it’s not important right now.” Victor looked at me hesitantly for a moment before looking back at Hux, nervously giggling and trying to bring the tension in the room down. “For now, how about you two take a walk on the beach, unwind, enjoy each other’s company after breakfast. Doesn’t that sound lovely?” Victor asked Hux, to which Hux let out a bitter ‘not really.’ I rolled my eyes as the two men went back and forth, Victor insisting we take just a short walk and then we could avoid each other and Hux repeatedly saying no until Hux literally threw his hands in the air with an angry growl.

“Fine, fine! I will escort the woman across the beach. Then I’m coming back to my castle to work on my affairs,  _ alone.”  _ He bellowed, his voice echoing off the walls of my bedchamber. The man began walking toward me as if he wanted to engage me in another painful conversation, but I was not having it. Instead I lifted my spoon to the bowl of oats, fully ready to dive into my breakfast. That was, until the entire tray was snatched out of my view. 

“What the hell?!” I exclaimed, lifting my head to see Hux walking off with the plate of food that I had chosen to be mine. He could have chosen to take the other plate, the one that was closer to him. They were both the same, contained the same amount of food and the same type of food. But no. He wanted me to suffer, so he took the food that I wanted. “Meet me in the gardens in two hours. We’ll take our walk to make these people happy.” Hux said over his shoulder at me. From there he walked to the door, threw it open and left, leaving Victor and I sitting in a rather awkward, tense, silence.

“Well, that could have certainly gone better.” Victor said, clearly trying to make light of the situation. My mood was so low, however, that I couldn’t find it within me to laugh at his joke. Instead I pulled the other plate of food toward me and sulked over it. My appetite had been long gone, and the nerves standing at attention in my stomach meant anything that went down had a good chance of coming back up. An entire walk across the small beach outside of the castle? How were we going to manage that without bickering at each other? 

“My Queen, I’m going to leave you to eat alone.” Victor said as he waltzed over to me. He bent down and placed a kiss in the center of my forehead, but even that hardly phased me. I couldn’t believe I was being made to do such a horrible thing with such a horrible person. Why couldn’t Hux and I just rule from inside of the castle? Why did I actually have to keep up this charade? My skin broke out in goosebumps as I thought I was going to have to hold him, to kiss him, to make my people believe that we actually loved each other. That wouldn’t work for me at all. “I do ask of you one thing. That you remember what I sent you to the Finalizer with before your wedding. Perhaps Hux may take a swim?” Victor said. It took me a minute to realize what he was talking about. The note about killing Hux. Victor wanted me to drown him. Once the realization set a smile broke out over my face. Even Victor couldn’t stand the man and his controlling tendencies. He still wanted him to die.

Victor had started to walk off when I had remembered one thing that Hux had requested of me. “Wait, Victor!” I called out just as he made it to the door. He turned and looked at me attentively, like I was the most important woman in the world to him at the moment. For the first time all morning long I felt important, wanted, and needed by someone. And funnily enough, that someone was not my own husband. “Would you send for the castle medic? I need a concoction of birth control.” I didn’t think it was a big deal to ask for such a thing, but according to Victor’s shocked expression, I was wrong.

“He, he raped you?” Victor asked breathlessly. The color had run from his face and I could tell he was shaken by the possibility. In turn I giggled at him, shook my head and calmed his fears.

“No, not at all.” I stated reassuringly, but he still looked surprised. “Redhead won’t admit it I’m sure, but it was consensual. He wanted it from me and I wanted to punish him for rejecting me at the altar.” I crossed my ankles and leaned my head to the side innocently, but Victor was not amused.

“Are you sure? You don’t have to lie for that Outsider.” Victor spoke, as his eyebrows knit down. His shocked look had turned to one of anger and I finally realized what the problem was.

“Are you jealous, Sir Victor?” I asked as I cocked a brow at him.

“N-No, surely not by Queen.” Victor retorted before clearing his throat and looking down at his feet. “He is your husband after all. A consummation is to be expected.”

“If it makes you feel any better, he’s not that great in bed. He couldn’t even hold out to let me cum, and I was left even more dissatisfied than the time you took my virginity from me.” Victor let out an awkward cough as the color and blood rushed rapidly to his cheeks, blushing in the embarrassment that I always loved to tease him about.

“That bad, huh?” Victor giggled, and I nodded my head. “Well, my apologies, My Queen. If you come and see me tonight, maybe I can make it up to you in King Hux’s place?”

“That sounds wonderful, Victor.” I said, smiling as seductively as I could at him. With a jovial laugh Victor assured me he’d fetch the medic and they’d be here shortly, then bid me farewell. I was left alone, thinking about if I was going to try and follow through with his plan on drowning my own husband. I sighed, once again dipping my spoon into my new bowl of oatmeal. If only my husband weren’t such a jerk. He was such a good looking man with a beautiful cock that did leave me the smallest bit satisfied in bed. Oh well, it surely must suck to be Hux. Because those good looks were wasted on such a brute like him. I didn't think I’d be able to kill him right away, but perhaps I could reason with him. I could call it a truce and end the war between us for just a while. The two of us wouldn’t get anywhere if we were constantly feuding with one another. So as I ate my breakfast I formulated in my mind what I would be saying to Hux, to ease him and offer my apologies. 

Positive. Today and for the rest of my time with Hux, I’d have to stay positive. 


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: Severe Sunburns depicted.

I dressed in a more modest dress. If I were going to be out in the sun I would need a proper way to deflect its harmful rays. I had on a white bralet as well as some white panties, just in case it was going to be so hot I’d have to shed my white sundress. The King had chosen the wrong time to be going out on a leisurely walk on the beach. It was nearly noon, the sun shone brightly over my castle and no doubt it would be hot. It was absurd, but since the Outsider thought he knew what was best for me and our people, then I would let him have his fun for as long as he could.

I entered into the gardens, my hair up in a bun atop my head I was as courageous as I could be. Hux was sitting at one of the patio chairs looking over his tablet and as soon as my bare feet touched the stone walkway he picked his head up, shot a painful look of annoyance at me before sighing heavily. He growled as he stood to his feet, tucking his tablet into his heavy coat. I stared at him, holding back the urge to allow my mouth to fall wide open at his unfortunate choice of clothing. “Are you sure you want to wear all of that?” I asked him. The man was a lunatic if he thought going on a walk on a hot, sunny day wearing his thick black coat, black pants, and black boots was a good idea.

“You don’t need to worry about what I’m wearing.” He said as he started to walk down the steps toward the garden exit. “All you need to do is walk. I want this over with as soon as possible.” I stood at the top of the steps and watched as he took a sharp left toward the back of the castle, then giggled to myself.

“Do you even know where you are going?” I called out, to which he turned around and looked at me accusingly. “The beach is the other direction. Didn’t you take a tour when you got here?” He scoffed, doing a 180 degree turn and walking toward the right direction. I rolled my eyes before walking off behind him, knowing this was going to be the longest, most agonizing walk across the beach I would ever take.

 

“Before we get much further, have some of this.” I said just as we set foot on the sand. I ran up behind Hux and fished through the small leather bag that swung my hip. It housed a few small trinkets that I liked to keep on me when I went so far from the caste, the magical pill that Hux had delivered to my room right after my breakfast, and what I wanted to share with him before our unavoidable walk. “Your skin, it’s much different than ours. It may not hold up well to the sun.” I took out the vile of sunblock and unscrewed the cap, but as I held my hand out for him to take it he just stared at me. “Oh come on. I’m sure you don’t want to end up with red, inflamed skin Outsider. This will help you.”

“I don’t trust any of your,  _ herbal  _ remedies. Just as much as I don’t trust your decision to use your medication over mine for prevention.” This was a terribly frustrating situation. I was using this walk as a way to raise my white flag, to push past any animosity I had for him and to simply move on. I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life fighting with him, I wanted to just exist with him. But here he was making it difficult for me, and there was nothing I could do to move in the right direction. 

“Speaking of, here.” I placed the sunblock back into my bag and replaced it with the small container that held the pale white pill. “My doctors gave me a method of prevention from my own planet. I won’t be needing this anymore.” When he didn’t make any effort to take the pill from my hand, I was finished being cordial. As calmly as I could I dug my toes into the sand, created a small hole and simply allowed the pill to fall into it. With a proud grin on my face I buried the pill in the sand and decided right then and there that it was time to raise the flag and call it a truce. 

“There. That’s symbolic enough, don’t you think, husband?” I asked him, looking deep into his eyes.

“Whatever are you talking about?” He asked sounding genuinely interested in what I was speaking about.

“I want to bury our past like I’ve buried this pill.” I started, walking a few more feet into the warm sand. “I know we don’t like each other, I know we don’t trust each other, and I know we have worlds of differences, but I want all of this to end today.” The offering was sincere, I was truthful in my words and I could only hope that Hux understood that. “You can’t stand me. I can’t stand you. Let’s take this walk and move on with our new lives. We don’t have to be at each other’s throats all the time.” 

From there, I brushed past him and onto the warm, sandy beach. Taking in the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, the smell of the salty sea air and the bright sun that shone all around me, I felt at complete peace. I had upheld my end of the agreement, now all Hux had to do was accept my offer. Even if he didn’t, that was okay too. I did what I had to do to find peace, and now that I had it I wasn’t ever going to let him ruin any part of me again. I turned around and looked over my shoulder and, to my surprise, found Hux following closer behind me than I thought. I smiled at him as I turned around fully, looking at him as he shimmied his coat off of his shoulders and slung it around his neck.

“Getting hot?” I asked, cocking a brow at him. He looked at me for a minute, his face just a bit more relaxed than it usually was but that was to be expected I suppose. 

“I am fine, wife.” He spoke as he stepped up beside me. “I accept your offer for peace. Please, let’s just finish this walk.” He said, unable to look me in the eyes. I shrugged my shoulders; this was certainly a fine idea for me.

 

We walked down the beach side by side, my toes curled into the hot sand as my skin absorbed the warm and comforting sun rays. We said nothing, but internally I was cackling as I watched my suspicions unfold before my very eyes. One by one Hux removed parts of his clothing, and I absolutely could not believe he wore so many layers. Aside from the heavy wool coat he wore he had three other layers on his torso, the final being a thick plated vest like object. The worst part of it all was they were all black and grey. By the time everything had been peeled off and the man was bare-chested, sweating profusely, and turning redder by the second, I was thoroughly satisfied with my win.

“Are you sure you don’t want any of this sunblock?” I asked him as he stopped and allowed a few of his clothes to drop to the sand. “It’s really no bother, even I had to put some on before leaving the castle.”

“Woman, I am  _ fine. _ ” Hux sounded as if he were pleading with me. He bent over at the waist and I was able to see a sheen of sweat on his near translucent back. I really didn’t understand how he thought he’d be able to survive on my planet wearing such clothes and refusing medication to stop sunburn. In fact, I was so intrigued that I just had to ask him what was up with his unfortunate choice of clothing.

“Why do you wear clothing on top of clothing? Clearly you are not comfortable, yes?” He stood up, looked down at the jumble of black clothing on the ground before flashing his eyes up at me for just a second.

“Because where I come from it is cold.” He said with thick, very serious emotion in his voice. “Before the Star Killer base was destroyed it was made up of snow and ice. To keep me and my organization comfortable in both areas I keep the temperature on the Finalizer cold. Thus I need these layers. But here? Here is much different.” He scooped his discarded clothing into his arms as he stood to his full height, surveying the beach all around him.

“Star Killer Base?” I asked in response. “I can’t imagine a place being made up completely of snow and ice.” Hux nodded his head and, for the first time, he looked at me with a sparkle of interest in his eye.

“It was. We took it as our own, converted it to our main base of operation and made it great. I led my men on many missions on that base, but by far the most exalted achievement of the base was the massive super weapon built upon it.” He looked me deep into my eyes, smiling devilishly as if the strain he had been put under beforehand had simply melted from his skin. “A weapon, more powerful than anything ever recorded in the galaxy. It fed off of energy from the sun and the stars around it, not just from the matter in the center of the planet. It was beautiful, it was marvelous…” His smile started to fade to a much angrier scowl. Clearly whatever he was going to say was going to be painful for him. “...but The Resistance went and ruined all of the hard work I had put in bringing it to life.” 

“The Resistance? Who are the Resistance?” A smile once again curled onto his lips as he took a step toward me.

“I’m so delighted that you ask.” He said, and I had never once regretted asking another question more than this one.

Hux went on and on into an extensive history of the First Order and the Resistance; both were names I had never heard of until this point in my life and they were both names of organizations that I didn’t care about. In fact, I didn’t care about much of anything he was saying. He talked so quickly about things that I didn’t care to listen to, so part way through his explanation on the leaders of the Resistance I simply turned and walked away from him. I heard him stutter to a stop, heard him take a step toward me in those horrid black boots but it still didn’t stop me from walking toward the water that had been calling my name since I set foot in the sand.

“Where’re you going, woman?” Hux asked me. “I was having a conversation with you, you can’t just walk away from me!” 

“I never said you had to stop talking to me.” I purred as I stopped right on the shoreline and grasped the bottom of my dress. I had no doubt that his eyes were on me as I began to lift it over my head, exposing my tanned skin to the sun. When he didn’t continue to speak I placed my dress in the sand and turned around, began stepping backward onto the dampened sand where the waves crashed against my feet. “Come, husband. Let’s continue our conversation in the water.” I smiled as I beckoned him with my hand, stepping back until the water surrounded my heels and climbed up my calves. It felt amazing to cool down in the bright blue water on such a hot day, and I could only assume Hux would enjoy it too. However, his boots stayed burried in the sand and he didn’t move an inch. 

I was waist deep in the water before I started laughing at his confused face. Was it really that difficult? “Come on! I know those boots are hot and heavy. Remove your pants and let’s take a swim.” His fingers began fidgeting with the clothing he carried and it was clear he was uncomfortable. 

“That’s quite alright. I will spectate.” He said, forcing a smile onto his face. His skin seemed like it was reddening by the second, 

“Oh, come on, husband.” I said as a I playfully splashed some water at him. He winced as he moved his body a little to his right to avoid the splash. He hardly moved at all, and I could only assume it was because he was in pain. “You’re getting burnt, the water is clean and it will help you cool off.” 

“Next time.” He said, once again forcing a smile. 

“Please don’t tell me that you don’t have water to swim in on your Finalizer ship.” I said as jokingly as possible, but when his cheeks began burning bright red under the already pink burn I knew something was amiss. I thought for a second before my jovial expression fell from my face and turned to one of shock. “Oh my word, you  _ don’t  _ have water to swim in where you come from?!” I asked. I couldn’t fathom how one could possibly live without swimming at least once or twice in their life.

“There was never a need for me to learn. The Strom trooper curriculum includes swimming lessons but it would always be assumed that I would be safe.” He started to explain himself as quickly as he could, but it all earned the same reaction from me: Pity.

“But what if you were to fall into the water by accident?” I asked, genuinely curious as to what his answer would be.

“Then my assistants would be able to pull me out of the water.”

“But what if you were alone?” I pressed even harder, but from the angry look he was casting at me I knew it wasn’t a good idea to pursue the thought any further. “What about your mother, did your mother not teach you how to swim as a--”

“ _ No.”  _ He snapped at me, causing me to take a step back as I thought he was going to lash out. “My mother, she didn’t teach me anything. Like I said, there was never a need for me to learn and that’s that.” He sneered, balling his hands at his sides and turning his body toward the beach.

“Well, that’s sad. Ellonian babies are taught to swim at six months of age at least. Want me to teach you?” I offered out of the gratitude of my heart. Nevermind the fact that Victor wanted me to drown him, to end his life so that I may rule alone. That was the last thing on my mind. Things were going so great between my husband and I that I just wanted to be comfortable in what could be considered at least a semi-normal relationship for a little while. Hux’s death could wait. I was having too much fun. 

“That’s quite alright. I don’t plan on having to  _ swim  _ anytime soon.” Hux said. The statement was ridiculous and I just didn’t understand his mentality. How could you not want to swim in the beautiful waters of Ellone? Especially on a hot day like this.

“Suit yourself then, I suppose.” I said, diving under the water. As I allowed the water to surround my entire body, to cool my hot black hair and my skin, I had to wonder why Hux was so opposed to the water. How was he able to live on Ellone and not swim? A large portion of our planet was made up of water and some of our people lived on boats! It seemed absurd, but he was a grown man. A grown man from the outside. I had to remind myself that Hux wasn’t like us. He wasn’t born and raised here. I couldn’t force him to adapt to my culture just like he couldn’t force me to adapt to his. That was just a fact I was going to have to get used to. 

I resurfaced facing out into the ocean, pushing my hair back and gasping for breath. Swimming had always been so relaxing for me. My only regret was that I had been so caught up in my own affairs that I hadn’t taken the opportunity to do so. “May we please go now?” Hux said, borderline whining as he caught my attention. I turned around and saw him standing just as awkwardly as I had left him, only this time his face made me aware of how much pain he was in before he was able to admit it. “The sun is starting to bother me.” I swept my eyes down his exposed torso and noticed it looked like his skin was starting to redden more than it had before I got into the water. It was too bad he elected to not use the sunblock I offered him. I began wading out to the shore, and once I had fully emerged from the ocean I reached down to retrieve my dress. The droplets and rivulets that clung to my skin, begging me to return to the water, wiped off easily enough. Once I was face to face with Hux I offered him a sincere smile, then we were off down the beach once again.

 

When we approached the other side of the castle Hux had covered himself with just his heavy outer coat, and while watching him shimmy it on I felt embarrassed for him. He cringed, bared his teeth in unimaginable pain as the wooly, rough fabric touched his irritated skin. It didn’t look as too bad when we made it off of the beach, but by the time we made it back to our bedchamber I realized how wrong I was. 

With a grunt he removed his coat and I found that his torso was burned so horribly that I was sure he’d never go outside again. His skin was red--not lightly pink as some of the lighter Ellonians skin sometimes turned. He looked like a freshly steamed lobster, like a perfectly ripe cherry pulled from a tree. It was one of the most horrifying and painful sights I’ve ever had to witness, and it only got worse from there. 

“Good, fucking, god. I am in so much pain.” The man said as he turned to walk toward the bed. I gasped as I took in the sight of his back which was just as red, yet in some parts he was so burnt that his skin was cracked and starting to peel. I took a step toward him but he quickly backed away from me, sitting down onto the bed and closing his eyes as I imagined he basked in his pain. His face was doing the same thing as his back; I really had never pitied anyone more than I did him. 

“You should have used the sunblock.” I said under my breath, going immediately to the bathroom. I decided that I couldn’t sit there and let the man suffer. No matter how stubborn or hard headed he was, he didn’t deserve to be in pain. Although I didn’t suffer sunburn too often, my staff kept my cabinets stocked with anything I would need should I be in pain--including a severe sunburn just as Hux had. 

“I don’t want to hear it, woman.” Hux grumbled, but I hardly heard him over the sound of the bath water running. My maids often washed my burned skin with cool washcloths, but Hux’s situation was far beyond simple washcloths. The man would need to cool his entire body off, and the only way I could see that happening was for him to sit in a bath. I leaned back and took a look at him as he sat slouched and helpless on the bed, he would need more than just water to heal in his bath.

“I’m running you a cool bath.” I called out to him as I pulled the jar of fresh lavender from the sink counter. I used these sometimes when I wanted to relax, but it was very rare

“That isn’t necessary, I assure you.” He said, his voice was strained as I heard him moving around on the bed. 

“Unless you want to sit around in pain for the next week, I suggest you accept my offer.” I tossed a few lavender leaves into his tub, then remembered I had a jar of chamomile flowers delivered with my morning tea. I used them to settle my nervous stomach, but surely it wouldn’t hurt to include them in the bath as well, right? I rushed out into the bedroom where I found him lying on his side on the bed, his face contorted into what was most definitely the most pained expression I had ever seen. I felt so bad for him, couldn’t stand to see him sit there and suffer any longer.

“Come on, tough guy.” I said as I stepped up to him. “I won’t let you sit here and be miserable. I’m going to help you whether you want me to or not.” I kept a straight face as I went for his zipper, pulling it down and then carefully grabbing the waistband of his pants and starting to shimmy them down his legs.

“Don’t!” He groaned, sitting up and bringing his tired eyes down on me. “I’ve got it. I’ll take care of it. Just, just help me to my feet.” He said. I grasped his hand and pulled him up, to which he shoved his fingers into his waistband and slowly allowed gravity to pull his pants to the floor. I cringed ever so slightly as I noticed his legs were a light pink and puffy as well, probably hot after absorbing the sun through his thick, black pants this entire time. All that was left on him was his black underwear as he swayed awkwardly in the middle of the room. Half of the battle was over, all that was left was to get him in the tub.

“Here, I’ll put some of these in your bath for you.” I said as I ducked to the table and grabbed the cup of chamomile. “You’ll feel better, I promise.” I said as I took his hand in mine and led him toward the bathroom. He stood there idly while I tossed the remaining three chamomile flowers into his tub and shut the water off. He shot me another uneasy look before gesturing toward the door. I counted it as a personal win, that he would be willing to accept my own kind of herbal remedy to fix his emergency medical situation. I stepped out of the bathroom with a proud grin on my face. Besides, just like swimming Hux was probably never exposed to the sun on his massive ship in the sky. He likely didn’t have a cure for sunburn in the First Order, but luckily for him, I did. 


	12. Chapter 12

“So you mean to tell me that, instead of drowning the man like I’ve asked of you, you ran him a bath and now you’re asking me to fetch him an anti-inflammatory herb and some aloe spread?” Victor asked as I sat spread out on my bed. His arms were crossed over his chest as he stared disappointingly at me. I could only smile back at him, really. He had such high expectations of me that I just didn’t feel like fulfilling. What was the rush, anyway? I knew Victor didn’t want an Outsider running our planet but why did I have to kill him this early? I was just beginning to enjoy my time with him. Perhaps dethroning the man by death could wait another week.

“Oh, right. About that…” I said with a chuckle. “Maybe I knew this was coming. Maybe I knew he was going to get burned and I just wanted the sun to seek revenge for me.” I shrugged, but Victor only huffed at me. 

“Do you really want that man ruling beside you?” Victor asked with a cock of his brow. “He calls our women whores for dressing as they were taught. He calls us savages for building our homes out of the wood and stone our planet has grown for us. He  _ hates  _ us. And it will be good for all of us if he is disposed of!” His tone went from one of seriousnesses to urgency, but I was still as relaxed as ever.

“No, Victor you’re right. I don’t want to rule next to him. But have you ever considered that there may be more than one way to dethrone him?” I asked as slyly as possible. “We don’t have to kill him. Perhaps we can show him that he’s not fit for our planet some other way. Some other way that doesn’t involve murdering a semi-innocent man and risking my life in the process?” I offered, but Victor just stared back at me like I had grown a second head upon my shoulders. “I also don’t think it’s a good idea to discuss such things when the man you’re trying to kill sit in the bathtub behind a thin wooden door just to your right, Sir Victor.” 

Victor cut his eyes toward the door before turning his back to me. I could tell he was irritated, disappointed, among other things. “You drag your feet any longer and you won’t have a planet anymore, my Queen. What makes you think he won’t destroy us?” Victor said as he pressed his lips in a tight line. The man had a point, but it infuriated me that he would talk back to me, his Queen, like he did.

“Victor, how many times must I say it?” I said, standing to my feed as confidently as I could. “I have everything,  _ everything,  _ under my complete, Queenly control. The fact that you won’t trust me is insulting and I want you gone if you’re just going to sit here and argue with me!” The two of us had an angry stare off before Victor stiffly turned around and started making his exit. I watched him go with my hands crossed over my chest, still not believing that Victor and I had our first real argument. I had tried to see it from his point of view, and I did understand where he was coming from, but it really put me off that he didn’t trust me. Hux was an outsider and I was the last person that was thrilled about my marriage to him. I didn’t want him anywhere near me, yet I didn’t think I had it in me to kill him. I had it in the forefront of my mind that there had to have been some way to sort this issue out without violence, and I was determined to find it.

“I’ll send for your husband's medication, my Queen.” Victor said with bitterness on his tongue. “But, you and I both know that I am the one who has run this planet since your parents have died. And you should know that I won’t sit around and watch your  _ husband  _ destroy it for much longer.” At that point, my blood boiled in my veins. Victor had never said anything like that to me before and, for the first time in during my ruling, I felt unsafe in my own castle. 

I took another forceful step toward him, trying my best to appear unafraid of my past lover, but the fire in his eyes swayed me otherwise. “Is this a threat, sir Victor?” I asked him, but he said nothing in return. Instead he turned and left, closing the door quietly behind him.

 

I was left sitting alone for twenty minutes until my bedchamber door opened again. In strode one of my nurses with a content grin on her face, carting a tray that had a small tin full of aloe and some anti-inflammatory herbal medication. “You sent for sunburn relief, my Queen, but you hardly look burned to me!” The nurse said with an amused grin adorning her face. I half smiled at her, still down about how Victor spoke to me like an untrained child, and thanked her. She said nothing else as she stepped merrily out of my bedchamber and left me alone once again. By now Hux had been in the tub for almost an hour, and I was growing tired of waiting for him. Plus I felt caring for Hux would be a decent distraction from everything that was troubling me, so I made the decision to end his bath a little early. 

Gingerly I knocked on the door, but when I got no answer I let myself in. I managed to catch Hux jumping in surprise and covering his cock with his hands as if he were embarrassed of his own body. “Don’t act like I haven’t seen you naked before, you silly Outsider.” I said with a smirk, but Hux wasn’t as entertained.

“We aren’t drunk. Have some respect for another human being, woman.” Hux said, but I could hardly focus on his words when his body was so red and swollen.

“Are you at least feeling any better?” I asked, but he rolled his eyes and looked away from me.

“I am, and I would prefer you to step out of the bathroom.” He was irritated, obviously, but he was my only hope to stop myself from fretting over Victor’s threats. Hux’s discomfort didn’t bother me, but I was also aware that this could spark another argument that I didn’t want to have. So I caved and allowed the man his privacy. 

“Sure, as you wish, Hux.” I said flatly. “But I suggest you get out soon, I have your aloe gel ready for you when you’re dry.”

“Aloe gel?” Hux asked and I turned to face him. He had questions that I wanted to answer for him, but as soon as I laid my eyes on him he held up his hand and met me with a look of annoyance. “You know what, nevermind. I’ll be out in a few.” He said, looking straight ahead. I smiled at him before making my exit, and from there I waited. I heard the tub drain and heard him rummage about in the bathroom, and when he finally opened the door and stepped into my bedchamber I couldn’t have been more relieved. 

He said nothing, didn’t even look at me, as he emerged with a comb in his hand and my white towel around his waist. His hair was a damp, dark orange and sat slicked back on his head. It still amazed me to know that people had hair colors other than that of the basic brown and black of our culture. I had heard of people with naturally blonde and white hair, but never orange. I almost asked him if he altered his hair in any way, but was cut short by the sight of him walking toward my closet. 

I jumped up from the bed, the tin of aloe still warmed in my hands, and nearly reached out to stop him. “What are you doing?” I asked him, but he didn’t stop, just ignored me as I ran up in front of him and blocked the closet door. “Don’t put on clothes, I’m about to rub this aloe into your skin.” Hux took a look down into the tin that I held out in front of him, took it from my hand and moved it around.

“What is this stuff again?” He asked with a scowl on his face. The gelatinous green material jiggled and sloshed around in his hand and he looked absolutely disgusted by it.

“It’s aloe. Plucked straight from the ground and emptied out into the tin, warmed for your comfort.” He lifted his head and stared blankly at me, and it shocked me to think that the man didn’t know what he was holding.

“Have you never been burned? I mean, I know where you’re from there’s no sun, but aloe has a lot of uses. You’ve never heard of aloe before?” 

“No, woman, I have not.” He said as he shoved the tin back into my hand. “Now if you would kindly step aside, I would like to dress.” He took an exaggerated step around me to enter the closet, but I stepped in front of him yet again.

“How do you expect a massage if you’re dressed, Outsider? Don’t tell me you people get massages with your clothes on.” Hux sneered at me, again tried to step aside me but I stopped him for a second time. “Please, just let me help you, Husband. I promise nothing that I’m going to do to you will hurt you.” He groaned, looked back down into the tin and rolled his eyes. He huffed and I instantly knew I had won this victory without an argument.

“Fine, but the towel stays on.” He said, and I instantly grew excited. For what, I wasn’t quite sure, but the idea of giving my husband a massage to help heal his broken body brought joy to my heart, and I didn’t care about his towel.

 

I had Hux lying face down on the bed where I got a clear look at his burned back. It would seem the cold water, lavender, and chamomile that I ran his bath with seemed to work just a bit, but it was still bad. I could see spots that were already starting to peel, and some that had darkened and were about to turn to blisters. It looked like the most painful sunburn I had ever seen with my own two eyes, and I didn’t want to imagine how it would age on his skin.

“I hope that next time you got outside you’ll use the sunblock I gave to you. Perhaps if you did you wouldn't be in this much pain.” I said as I made myself comfortable on my knees next to him. He hadn’t said anything aside from his moans and groans as he settled on his stomach, and for that I was thankful. Clearly I was the one who was the most knowledgeable about the situation and it would have annoyed me if he fought me. However, I thought the fact that he was allowing me to treat him spoke volumes about how much he trusted me now.

I dipped my fingers into the aloe and wasted no time in slathering the warm liquid onto his back. He jumped at the feeling and let out the quietest of squeaks. It was then that I knew I was right, that he had never had aloe on a burn before. 

“Can we try not to do that again?” He said, and it only made me giggle. 

“Oh, hush, Outsider. In just a minute you’re going to be begging me for more.” I said with an alarming amount of confidence. The goop of aloe was staring me down, waiting for to me to start rubbing it in. I couldn’t keep the poor man waiting, so once again I placed my hand upon his back and started to massage him. His skin was so warm to the touch, and every new portion I touched with the aloe was so dry and made him jump. The poor man was so uncomfortable, but once his entire back was covered with a generous amount of Gel I could truly start his massage.

Since I sat at his hips I decided to start at his lower back. Having only given a massage to someone a handful of times I wasn’t too sure about myself. I pressed my thumbs into his spine and began kneading, moving out to his hips after a while and making sure I was rubbing the aloe into his skin. Stark white imprints of my fingertips and hands were left for a few seconds on his skin, which would then fade back into the light red it had been before hand. This burn was bad, and he was going to be in pain for a while. I may not have liked the man, but was I was delighted that he was letting me care for him. 

I made my way up his back, taking the time to massage every inch of his skin as gently as I could. He was stiff and unwilling at first, but as I inched my way up and down him I noticed he started to relax. He was incredibly muscled for such a slim and slender man. I was quite shocked to feel how thick his back was. It was such a huge turn on for me. He was a powerful, strong, and good looking man, yet here he was sitting so vulnerable in front of me. Allowing me, someone he looked down at, to care for him. It was so normal, yet so erotic. I smiled as I made it up to his neck where I even took the time to rub my aloe covered fingers into the red skin that existed there. He was so relaxed and so still, and once I started to massage right under his ears he let out the first sign that he was enjoying what I was doing to him: a moan.

I repressed a giggle as I felt myself falling into the trap that was set up for me last night. I was power hungry and aroused, and that wasn’t a good combination with a good looking man sitting right in front of me. “You know, you’ve got a very,  _ muscular  _ back.” I said as I placed my finger at the base of his neck and ran it down his spine. 

“Muscular, you say?” The man said without moving a single inch. 

“Yeah. Muscles here…” I said as I stopped to gently outline one of the muscles around his shoulder blades. “...and here…” I moved my attention to another that was right below the first one I found. “You must work out a lot.”

I felt his body make a slight movement, indicative of a chuckle or a light laugh as he picked his head up and looked back at me. “It’s a good thing to do. To keep yourself active and healthy. The muscles are just a bonus.” I laughed at him. I too was a very active person, yet didn’t have half the muscle mass he did. 

“I agree. I like to play volleyball on the beaches when it’s nice out. I’m quick, but not very strong I guess.” 

“I’ve noticed.” Hux said softly. “The way you attacked Ren. It was impressive.” I beamed as he talked about my accomplishments, the praise flew to my head and it only turned me on even more. “I wouldn’t suspect any less, though. The way your troops are trained I could only imagine you could move too.” I scooted closer to him, smiling down at him as the lust grew inside of me. I wished he wouldn’t have burned so badly, because at the time I felt needy in an incredibly selfish way. 

“Come, let me get your chest.” I said as I dipped my fingers back into the aloe, but Hux looked at me like I was crazy.

“No, that’s quite alright.” He said as he lay his head back down. I stared at the back of his head, thinking he was crazy for not wanting the front half of his body to be aloed like the rest. That’s when I noticed that the man had been burned so badly that his scalp was even light pink. “I am perfectly capable of treating myself. I only wanted to be pampered for a moment.” He smiled slyly at me from over his shoulder, and then the challenge was on.

“Pamper you, you say?” I asked, looking down the length of his body. “What if I wanted to pamper you even more?” 

“How do you mean?” Hux asked. My lips curled up in a devilish smile. There were definitely ways I could ‘pamper’ him.

“Why don’t you roll over and find out? I seem to remember that you owe me from the last ‘pampering’ I gave you last night.” My voice was silky smooth, I thought I was doing a good job in steering the conversation where I wanted it to, but as usual, Hux was a total killjoy.

“I won’t be much good with a burned body, my dear. And I told you last time, our last sexual adventure was a mistake that I’d not like to repeat.” The words pissed me off. He had seemed so into it just now and here he was rejecting me. I didn’t think I had a chance, so I decided it was best to stop while I was ahead so I wouldn’t continue to disappoint myself.

“Suit yourself, husband.” I said, moving forward and pulling myself off the bed. If he wasn’t going to entertain me, then I would have to go off and find something else to do. Perhaps meet up with Aurine, or go for a swim, or something that didn’t involve thinking about my husband. I crossed my arms as I stepped away from the bed, only to be stopped by a weak ‘wait’ coming from behind me. I turned around and saw Hux propping himself up on his arms, looking at me like a needy puppy.

“Maybe you can continue the massage.” He said, leaving the last word hanging in the air with just a hint of uncertainty. “I mean, you’re right. I am burned pretty badly. It’d be embarrassing if my back healed properly before my chest did.” Yet again, I smiled deviantly at him. 

“Yes sir. You’re right.” I spoke, walking back toward him and sitting on the bed. “Turn over. I can fix you.” I stuck my hand into the tin of aloe once again while Hux slowly turned onto his back. My eyes traveled down his reddened chest to the towel that was doing a bad job of concealing his erection. I unabashedly stared down at it as I laid out the aloe gel on his reddening chest. I didn’t know what changed his mind so abruptly, but I was more than willing to oblige him.

I could just barely see the man’s abs poking out of his belly, and that more than anything turned me on. I ran my hands over them, ran the tips of my fingers over them, outlining them and leaning up over his burned body so that he could get an eyeful of my breasts. “You’re such a big strong man, yes?” I spoke, but he only grunted in reply. “And you need me, such a small, insignificant woman in your eyes to heal your burnt skin here.” I teased him, and I enjoyed every second of it. My hand slowly traveled down toward the towel where I knew his member would be eagerly waiting for me. 

“I wouldn’t say insignificant. You still have so much to learn, but you are moldable.” He said, almost immediately pulling me from the mood. I decided to let the matter go, however, because things were going so well. Maybe I could be angry at him later, but for now, I was on a mission.

“Oh? You’ll teach me?” I asked as my fingers slipped under the towel and onto the head of his warm cock. It was already rather wet, clearly my massages had turned him on long enough for him to leak precum all over the towel. To have this kind of power over a man was mind blowing, especially since I was sure, deep down inside, that he still did not like me. “You’ll teach me how to be a great leader?”

“I’ll model you after the best: Myself.” He said, bringing his arms up behind his had and allowing a smile to form over his lips. The sentence made me want to roll my eyes at him. I found out then that the two of us did have something in common: that we both had a thing for praise. We had an understanding and knew how to get each other going, and that was something I could work with.

My fingers wrapped snugly around his cock as I stared him deep in his eyes. “Tell me more, General?” I began moving my hand up and down and he took a deep breath. I could tell that my words were going straight to his head, and the sexual contact was helping a little too well. “What do you see in me? Why am I special enough to learn from you, the greatest general of the entire Order?” His mouth dropped open as a wanton moan tumbled from between his lips. I giggled in response, unable to hold back my amusement. What was with these men and their inability to hold back their need?

“Well, just look at you.” He began, already sounding winded as I started jerking my hand even faster under his towel. “You’re just as strong as I am. You’re intelligent, you’re conniving and tactical--when you want to be that is.” I scowled at him and his audacity to say such a thing when I was trying to get him off. I stayed quiet as I slowed my motions, which he clearly didn’t like. “I can see your potential, woman…” He trailed off, his eyes begging me for more. My grin crept back onto my face as my movements picked up again. I took pleasure watching his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he relaxed once again. “...and I think if you ruled using methods that only  _ I  _ could teach you, you would make a great asset to my powerful organization.” 

It would seem that he was nearing his end as he started talking more and more about the Order, and about how great of a leader he was. I stared at him looking as interested as I could as I watched the man lose control. His face contorted and relaxed as his body tensed and untensed, and just when I thought he was going to come undone in my hand he took a deep breath and looked me deep in my eyes. “I know I can teach you. I know that I can make you great.” He said as he reached his hand up and placed it on my cheek. I leaned my head into the palm of his hand as slowed down. Clearly whatever he was going to say was going to be important, and I wanted to give him my full, undivided attention. “You’ve got the best teacher in the world here to teach you how to be a great ruler. All you have to do is be receptive.” He spoke, and I thought there was only one way to reply to such a delusion.

“Whatever you wish, my King.” I said, subtly mocking him while starting to jerk him off again. I wasn’t expecting his body to jerk so violently, for him to rip his hand from my face, and for him to howl at the ceiling. I looked down just in time to see small bits of his seed appearing on his red skin as he came onto himself, completely missing my hand thank goodness. To see him so spent aroused me so much, but I really didn’t think he’d be willing to reciprocate. So I stared down at him and his red body that was shiny with aloe for a few moments, wondering if I should take the time to reach under my dress and get myself off or not when Hux once again took me by surprise.

He took a hold of my free hand and tugged me toward him, his face was redder than the sun had turned it and I really had no idea what was on his mind. “Thank you.” He whispered to me, and I nodded my head at him. I grew worried when he refused to let me go. “You’re an incredible young woman.” He said breathlessly. That’s when I knew something was amiss. He pulled on my arm once again and I scooted a bit closer. The look in his eyes told me he wanted more from me, and I couldn't believe what he was conveying to me.

“You said I owed you from last night. May I?” He asked, and I couldn’t hold back my laughter. That was the most cordial way I had ever heard anyone ask for sex. The man was full of jokes today and I felt like I couldn’t move closer to him fast enough.

He guided me to his face and rid me of my underwear, and even though he seemed more than willing to finally allow me my turn to cum, I was still confused. “Your face is burned.” I pointed out as I sat kneeling next to his head. “You probably shouldn’t do this.” The man chuckled at me, then gripped me by my hips.

“Didn’t we just go over this? I am the most powerful man in the First Order.” He said, challenging me. “If you consent, I’m going to show you how great I am.” He said. His words were so childish, so incredibly ill-thought out that it almost turned me off. I stole a look down the length of his body and saw that he was still erect. Clearly this was turning him on, and who was I to deny the man when there was a good chance I would finally get some sexual satisfaction from it? Being careful not to knee the man in the face, I swung my leg over him and took my spot upon my new throne.

I was thoroughly impressed by what Hux brought to me that afternoon in bed. I was left leaning over the headboard, grinding my cunt against his tongue as he held me down by my thighs. He knew exactly where I needed him to be, and I was unashamed in screaming Hux’s name as he brought me to orgasm after eating me for twenty minutes straight. My thighs were trembling, my legs were weak as I rolled off of him and onto the free side of the bed. If anyone would have ever told me that the man that ripped my veil from my head on our wedding day would be giving me one of the most intense orgasms in my life, all while being severely sunburned, I would have never believed them. Yet here I was, completely out of breath and still feeling the aftershocks of my orgasm all while he sat propped up on his elbow smiling down at me. He had won this round, sure. Maybe now I would be more receptive to leaving him alone now that he’s finally satisfied me.

“You are quite tasty.” Hux said, and now it was my turn to bask in the glow of his praise.

“I know I am. You wouldn’t be the first to say such a thing.” I smoothed down my dress while he cleared his throat, and I was disappointed to watch him get up and head toward the closet. He didn’t seem too amused with my comment, but that was alright. I waited patiently for him to emerge wearing a light, black sweater and a loose pair of dress pants, and I internally rolled my eyes. Had he not learned his lesson the first time he was burned today? Wearing these black long sleeve sweaters and long black pants would not help the sunburn he currently had. 

“While what we shared just now was fun and erotic, I have to say that it was not expected and I’d--”

“You’d like it to not happen again. I knew it was coming.” I cut in, to which he nodded his head. “I wasn’t interested in taking you up on your offer to train me anyway.” I grinned happily at him as he cut his eyes at me. Instantly we were back on neutral terms, and for some reason I was more comfortable living like this than on better terms when we made love to each other.

“Well then I suggest you keep out of my way. Because I’m going to fix this planet whether you want an active role in it or not.” He said, and he didn’t even give me the chance to react. He simply turned and left, leaving me to think about our last interaction. Why was it that I liked him leaving me alone more than I liked having sex with him? When we were in bed together he was the nicest to me, even if he did have to put me down to get off. But now? He threatened me. I leaned back, stared at the ceiling as I tried to make sense of myself and my feelings toward my husband. When I came back with nothing, I realized I would need more help than what I could give myself. It seemed like the kind of thing the castle therapist would be willing to help me out with, and even though it wasn’t a pressing issue at the time I felt like it would be best to talk with her today while these feelings were still fresh in my mind.

I stood from the bed and retrieved a new pair of panties, then walked to the bathroom where I freshened myself up. I smoothed my dress over my body once again and when I felt I was ready, I exited the bathroom to find an envelope sitting on my pillow. I furrowed my brows, that definitely wasn’t there when Hux was here, because it would have been sitting under his head. I stepped up to it and took in the uniform lettering on the front, it was addressed to  _ the Queen of Ellone.  _ It was so odd. Each letter wasn’t uniquely shaped and written out like handwriting, instead they each looked pressed and exactly the same. Regardless, I forced my thumb under the envelope and revealed a crisp, folded, stark white piece of paper that was written in the same lettering from the front:

 

_ To the Queen of Ellone, _

_ Congrats on your marriage to my General. I hope that all is well. I am still interested in training you and making you a greater asset than Hux ever could. I’d like to invite you to dinner on the Supremacy where we can talk terms out an clear up any confusions you may have about me and my organization. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Kylo Ren. Supreme Leader of the First Order.  _


	13. Chapter 13

I sat on the side of my bed with the letter from the Supreme Leader in my hand, reading over every word as I tried to iron out the very last detail in my plan. I had already decided I wanted to go see him, especially since my therapist had told me I needed to unwind and free my mind of Hux. She had told me it was likely a reaction my body was giving off whenever I was around him. She reminded me that we had only spent so much time together and so much of it was having sex. It was only natural that I grew so conflicted when I saw him, but she recommended that if I truly thought he was toxic to me I needed to separate myself from him; to make all of our interactions about business and ruling, and nothing else. It seemed simple on paper, but the man was so alluring. His body was the perfect way for me to relieve stress, but my mental health was far more important.

So sitting there on the bed I decided that I would leave quietly. I would alert as little people as I possibly could to keep suspicion low, but I had no idea how I would set all of this in motion. I’d have to ask for transport, and the last thing I need is either Hux or Victor dragging me away from the monster ship when all I want to do is get away. Thinking about it only made my head hurt, and it certainly didn’t help that I had been sipping on one of the strongest alcohols kept in the castle all evening long. The therapist told me to think of and take care of myself, and when drinking is one of my favorite things to do, I had to spoil myself at the bar. 

I didn’t even get halfway through the drink before setting it down on my nightstand and folding the letter up to store in my pillowcase. My therapist told me to stay in fine tune with my body, and right now my body was telling me it was time to sleep. I tossed a careless look at the emptiness that existed on the other side of the bed, scoffing at my husband's absence. Last night we shared a bed and he claimed this was his room. Maybe he realized he was wrong and found somewhere else to sleep. I curled up under the covers and blew out the candle next to my bed. I would have to remember not to let him interrupt my sleep. 

 

The next morning I woke up in a great mood. The day before I had gathered up all of my friends and planned a beach day. Lunch, drinks, swimming, and, my favorite, volleyball in the sand.  I needed the time away from the castle and with my best friends, and it would seem like it was going to be the best day to do such a thing. I stared out the window at the sunshine, at the birds that flew by squawking happily. It was warm and airy in my room, and I actually caught myself smiling and relaxing before the rugged sound of someone clearing their throat brought me out of the mood. I fully expected to see Victor sitting at the small table and chair set in the middle of my bedchamber, but when I rolled to my side I immediately let out an irritated sigh. 

“What are you doing here, husband?” I asked Hux as he uncrossed his legs. I was supposed to be spending time away from him, yet here he was at my bedside the second I woke up. 

“Last I checked this was my bedroom too, wife.” Hux spoke back to me, and I rolled my eyes. I sat up and looked at the other side of the bed, taking notice of the blankets and pillows that had looked like they were moved around. It unsettled me to think he had wormed his way into my bed after I fell asleep, and then before I woke up he managed to get out of bed and get dressed without me knowing. I shut my eyes for a moment, thinking back to what my therapist said. I needed to stay away from him.

I swung my legs over to the bed and started to walk toward the bathroom. It was almost ten AM and I had told my friends to meet me on the beach at 11 to start our day. Whatever Hux wanted from me, I wouldn’t have time for it. 

“Take this with you.” He said. At the sound of him standing up behind me, I turned around to see him holding out a white stick. He couldn’t be bothered to look at me, instead he stared down at the stone patterns on the ground. It was like the contraption embarrassed him in some way, but he wasn’t explaining what it was so I had no idea what to do with it.

I took it from his hand and twirled it in my hand. The thing had one oval-shaped section cut out, and next to it sat a chart. It said two lines indicated a pregnancy and one line didn’t. As soon as I laid my eyes on the chart, I was floored. 

“Why would you think I need this thing?!” I shouted at him, seeing red as I tossed the test to the floor in front of him. 

“Because I want to be certain.” Hux said before bending over, picking it up and shoving it into my hand again.

“I told you already, I got treated using my methods which I’ve used for years now. I’m not pregnant.” I crossed my arms as I tried to calm myself. My therapist hadn’t prepared me for what I was supposed to do when I did come in contact with him. 

“I know this, woman,” Hux said with a heavy sigh. “But what is it you call me all the time? An  _ outsider.  _ Can’t you understand why I don’t trust these things?” My eyes widened as I took in his somber words. What was it going to take for him to trust me? And more importantly, why couldn’t he just take my word for it? I narrowed my eyes at him, looked at the stick in his hand and decided it wasn’t worth the argument. 

“Whatever.” I said as I snatched the stick out of his hand and stormed into the bathroom. The only thing I had on my mind was: the faster I appeased him, the faster I could get on with my day.

Once I was behind the closed door I spun the stick around in my hand. It was a pregnancy test, but how in the world did it work? Pregnancy tests on Ellone were done by mixing several types of herbs and medications in a cup and urinating into it. I wouldn’t be able to explain it, but the color the urine turned would reveal if the woman was pregnant or not. Most Ellonians elected not to do this because the test components were so rare and hard to make. Instead they would wait until their belly grew and it would be obvious. I’ve only had to do one a handful of times, and thankfully my urine always turned red which was indicative of a negative result. This thing was completely different, and I didn’t know if I was supposed to spit on it, lick it or insert it into myself or something else absurd. 

“Tell me how do I use this thing?” I called out to Hux.

“Take off the cap and urinate on the smaller end.” He called out to me. I wrinkled my nose as I found the removable cap and pulled it off. There was a somewhat spongy stick protruding from the end. I ran my thumb over the rigid piece, swallowing a thick was of saliva. What was supposed to happen? How would these lines appear to tell me if I was expecting? I could feel my anger shifting to worry as I lifted my eyes to the toilet. It hit me right then and there that there was a chance this test would come up positive. And then what? 

The color drained from my face as I thought of this possibility. I had spent so much time fighting with Hux to get him to trust that I wasn’t pregnant, but standing here with the test in my hand made me feel totally different. What would I do? Who would I tell? And most importantly, what would Hux do to me if I was pregnant with his child? I shook my head as I took a step toward the toilet. Standing here in fear wouldn’t help anyone. Hux was waiting on the results and so was I. Again, the quicker I got this done, the quicker I could go on with my day.

 

After urinating on the end just as Hux told me I held the stick tightly in my hands. I watched as a discoloration ran up the small window, and when a pink line appeared I almost dropped to the ground. My mouth fell open and I started shaking, but I soon realized that, according to the chart, only one line meant I wasn’t pregnant. “Goodness!” I said, possibly a little too loud because I heard Hux shuffle from the other side of the door. 

“What does it say?” He called out, and I chuckled at him. Proudly I made my way to the door and opened it to find him stumbling away. It was as if he had been pressing himself against the door waiting for me to answer him. He was a dork, and even the alarmed look on his face couldn’t break the immense feeling of relief and confidence I had.

“It says you should have trusted me the first time.” I said as I handed it back to him. “Now if you could kindly leave me be. I have plans to attend to on the beach.” I strut past him over to my closet where I planned on just wearing a skirt and a bra top for my entire day of relaxation. However, once I made it into my closet, Hux decided he had more to say to me.

“Do any of those plans involve attending the political meeting with me and teaching me about the affairs of your planet?” I stopped cold in my path, placed my hand on the door frame of the closet and leaned out to look at him. I was confused, caught completely off guard by the question. He was even looking at me as if he was scolding a child in trouble. 

“What are you talking about?” I asked him, furrowing my brows. He only scoffed at me before walking off, out of my bedroom to wherever he was going. I stared at the door for a few seconds before somehow convincing myself that the man was toying with me. He wasn’t ready to give me up, so he tried to get me to spend more time with him. It’s not what either of us needed, and I was certain Victor would have alerted me of any political affairs going on that I needed to know about. All I had to do was dress and head down to the beach with my friends. Nothing more, and nothing less.

 

All of my friends met me at the time we agreed on, and there wasn’t a moment where we weren’t smiling and laughing together. Playing in the water, building laughable sandcastles, drinking in the shade, it was all so relaxing. They made jokes about my husband, apparently his presence wasn’t too welcome around these parts. They talked about how he doesn’t talk to anyone but his goons, about how he always looks so angry and about how no one--absolutely no one on my planet--trusts him. 

“What if he’s planning on destroying our people?” Aurine asked me, kicking some sand into my lap to catch my attention. Talking about Hux was counterproductive, and I had leaned back and focused on the crashing waves to ignore them. I wanted to chime in and say Hux wasn’t so bad sometimes, none of them lived in the castle and saw who he actually was, but I couldn’t. Because he was an Outsider, and I expected this reaction at some point. Besides, this meeting wasn’t supposed to be about Hux. It was supposed to be about me and my healing.

“I doubt that, Aurine.” I said, solemnly digging my hands and feet into the sand. 

“Why’s that Queenie? Have you fallen in love with the man?” She asked with a shit-eating grin on her face. The others chimed in with their own laughter, but there was nothing funny about that statement. “I’ve heard Grandma Witchy down the road say marriage does funny things to people. But you’d have to be mad to fall in love with him.” It was just a joke of course, and I knew Aurine would never try and bully me like this. But it still hurt my feelings. Not because I  _ was  _ falling in love with him, but because the smallest part of me felt like I could fall in love with him given the right circumstances.

“Because he likes me.” I said, causing more of our friends to erupt with laughter. I felt like I was under attack, like a schoolchild being cornered by her harassers as they laughed at my silly explanation. 

“So, you think he’s not going to destroy us because he  _ likes  _ you? What makes you so different than the rest of us?” She probed, but truthfully I had no answer for her. Hux willingly fucked me twice. He cared for my health (and our hypothetical child’s heath), and even made sure I was warm and taken care of on the Finalizer. He wasn’t all bad. I just didn’t understand why I was constantly looking for the good in him. 

“No reason. He just does.” I argued back, laying down completely in the sand. 

“We will take your word for it, Queen.” Another one of my friends said, and I was finally relieved when the conversation switched to the growing heat of the season. I placed my arm over my face and just tried to focus on myself and my feelings while the others jabbered on around me. These feelings made no sense to me, but that was okay. I had already decided he wasn’t worth the time, thoughts or effort. 

After a lunch made up of native fruits and vegetables, I found myself once again in high spirits as I ducked, dodged, and dove for the yellow ball we were hitting over the net. Volleyball. It had been my favorite sport since I was in school. My parents played it, my grandparents played it, and my great grandparents played it. It was like our planetary sport that everyone had played at least once in their lives, and it was just what I needed to perk right up. Aurine was on my team as were two other girls, and my other friends were on the other side of the net desperately trying to get us to drop the ball. We were winning of course, and everyone on the opposite team was looking stressed.

“Come on guys.” I cooed, feeling vengeful for the way they treated me before lunch. “It’s just a fun game. Who cares if you lose?” I had the ball in my hand ready to serve as the others sat there with their hands on their knees, panting like they were dying.

“Serve the ball, Queenie.” One of them said, clearly irritated with my cockiness. There really wasn’t any reason to prolong it, my team and I were only one point away from winning and calling the game an end. So I balanced the ball in my hand before serving it and watching it soar over the net. 

I had to jump, bounce from spot to spot as my friends would return the ball back to my side of the net. I could tell they were getting tired, that my team was much more coordinated than they were and we had it down. No matter where the ball was projected to land, either myself or my teammates were there for it. While the ball was being returned by Aurine in the back, I noticed there was a clearing in the front left of the court. I called it to her attention and she nodded her head. She returned it as far to the right as she could, and when it came back it was coming toward me. 

Holding my breath, I backed up until it was right below me. This was it, my one chance to end this game once and for all. I reached my hands above my head, jumped as high as I could and hit the ball with all my might. I could feel every muscle in my body stretching and pulling as I gave this final blow my all. I hit the ground on my hands and knees, and when I looked up the ball was sitting there in the sand; right there where I wanted it to be. 

I heard my teammates behind me shout and carry on, and as soon as I tried to stand up Aurine tackled me into the sand. “We did it Queenie!” She giggled as she rolled me over on top of her. “We won!” I allowed the stress to fall off my shoulders for one minute in order to celebrate with her. We were sandy, we were sweaty, and we were happy. 

“Oh, stop showing off.” One of my friends shouted from the other side of the net. Aurine stood up off of me and I watched the sand sprinkle down from her long legs and slim stomach as she shot our friends on the opposite side of the net a dirty look. 

“Sore losers. Who needs them?” She said, reaching down for my hand. Immediately an image of Hux fluttered through my mind.  _ Sore loser.  _ Hux was a sore loser. 

“Certainly not me.” I said as I accepted her hand. She pulled me to my feet and I began the long process of sweeping the sand from my body. “Aurine, go order a round of drinks for everyone at the lounge.” My eyes swept over my small group of friends on the other side of the net as they caught their breath and talked quietly among themselves. They were taking their loss too hard and this wasn’t what I wanted from our little get together. 

“Free drinks?” Aurine said loudly, cutting her eyes to the other side of the net where our friends almost immediately perked up. “Did you guys hear that? Free drinks on the Queen!” I watched Aurine rush to the other side, ducking her long body under the net and running through the small crowd. I smiled as I watched all of them follow her, until another one of my friends, Carrie, stopped walking and turned around to acknowledge me. 

“Aren’t you coming with us?” She asked. A content half-smile settled over my face as I took in the newfound quiet around me. Sure I was going to join them, but not right away. I wanted some time alone, time to myself on the beach before joining and causing a noisy ruckus with my friends like we just did. 

“I will be right behind you guys.” I said as I turned toward the castle. I briefly thought about taking a short dip in the hot tub, or running to my bedchamber and having a quick shower, but my plans were thwarted as I followed the stone walls up to my window. There stood the very man I was trying to avoid. His eyes were locked with mine for a second before he turned and shamefully walked away. He was like a beautiful statue that was posted at my window, like he had been standing there for quite a while. Watching me. Watching my friends. Watching me watching him. But then he broke free of his binds, shying away as he had been caught staring. It left me with goosebumps and an uneasy feeling. The crazed man. He refused to acknowledge the fact that he was just as attracted to me as I was to him, yet was comfortable standing and staring at me through a window.

“On second thought,” I said as turned back toward Carrie. She flashed a hopeful smile at me as I took the few steps toward her to close the gap between us. “I’ll come with you. I all of the sudden have a chilling feeling that I won’t be alone like I want to be out here.” I threw my arm around Carrie and sped up her gait for her. I had no idea what was going on in Hux’s mind, but I was sure I wanted no part of it. 

 

After drinks, dinner, and more time on the beach with my buddies, my day of relaxation came to a painful end. I gave each and every one of my friends a hug and kiss at the door of my castle, and once it was closed I felt lonelier than I ever had. All of my maids and workers had long gone to bed, and it would seem the entire castle was empty. I leaned against the door, my drunkenness still hanging on to my last bit of clarity. Yes, the day with my friends helped me, but now that I was here by myself, I couldn’t help but to mope. 

I lifted myself from the door and started the long walk back to my bedchamber, trying to occupy my mind with thoughts other than those that brought me down. Were my friends really my friends? Or were they just around because I got them the day off of work and free food and drinks? Would they even still stick around if they got to see how cruel Hux was? What about Aurine? How long was she planning on sticking around?  I felt tears beginning to fill my eyes as my thoughts got darker and darker from there. I felt hopeless, at least until I remembered the letter from the Supreme Leader that was still sitting in my pillow. 

He wanted to see me. There was someone out there that was excited about my presence. It was an amazing feeling, and at just the thought a newfound energy was born within me. I wanted to run to retrieve the letter, but I had to be curious to all the other people sleeping around me. Once I had the letter I could arrange transportation and I could go visit him, see what he had to offer me. 

I had successfully crept back to my bedchamber, it was well after midnight and when I opened the door I was disappointed to see a lump sitting on the far side of my bed. Hux had found his way back into my bed somehow, and because I had nowhere else to go I would have to share it with him. As quietly as I could I reached into my pillowcase and plucked the letter from the linin. Hux didn’t even so much as budge, not an orange hair on his head moved as I stepped away from the bed, stepped out into the hall and ventured away. This time I couldn’t keep my footsteps quiet as I trotted all the way to Victor’s personal quarters.

I was hopeful as I saw a sliver of light shining under his door. I had known Victor to stay up rather late, and I was sure he’d have no issues with me dropping by unannounced. I had never once knocked on Victor's door, and tonight was no different. I slipped into his home where I followed the light to his small kitchen and found him standing there shirtless washing his dishes. I took a moment to admire his back, which was noticeably less muscled than Hux’s was. A devilish grin grew on my face as I decided what I wanted to do was scare him, to take him by surprise and perhaps make him beg for my forgiveness in threatening me. I held my lower lip tightly between my teeth as I tiptoed behind him, and once I was close enough I went in for the kill.

“Boo!” I shouted as my hands flew to his sides, moving my fingers in every which direction in order to tickle him. He shouted at the top of his lungs, dropping the fork he held in his hands into the sink and the towel he was using to wash it to the floor. He jumped away from me, continuing to squeal as I laughed off his terror. Truth be told, I felt safe here with Victor. I didn’t feel alone or awkward, I didn’t feel like he was a fake friend or something that could be taken away from me so easily. As everything between us calmed down, I almost wanted to just collapse in his arms and just sob. Let out everything that was worrying me and hear everything he had to say to me to cheer me up.

But I didn’t. Because the look of disgust on his face told me that there was something amiss.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, taking yet another step back. “I didn’t invite you here this evening. Why did you force your way into my home?”

“Whatever are you talking about you mad man?” I asked as the adrenaline began to run through my veins. “You told me I could come by whenever I needed to. I just have a question!” Victor rolled his eyes at me before stepping in front of me and shoving me out of the way of his sink.

He started the water, and from under his breath I heard him mumble the words ‘treason’ and ‘traitor’ under his breath, strung together by intelligible words and I’m sure would have hurt my feelings. 

“What did you say, sir Victor?” I asked in the most accusatory tone. My voice began to rise as the tears began to fall. I know Victor and I had one of the first arguments ever, but I didn’t think he’d ever disown me like this. 

“Keep your voice down, woman.” Victor said as he forcefully tossed the fork he had been washing back into the sink. “I don’t want people to know that you’re here.” My jaw fell to the ground at his words. Nothing, not a single thing that had ever been said to me, had hurt me more than the words that came from Victor’s mouth. I took a step away from him as his eyes pierced their way into my soul. 

“Victor,” I breathed, desperately trying to hold myself and my emotions together.”What’s happened to you? Why do you treat me like this?” Victor froze at the sink, turned and glared at me over his shoulder before simply asking me what I wanted again. I was crushed. I was devastated, and I had no idea how I was supposed to cope with the loss of the one person that had supported me all these years. It was like he had assumed I was choosing Hux over him, which was definitely not the truth. I didn’t even have the nerve to tell him what I needed. 

Instead I turned and left him alone. He didn’t want people to know I was here, that meant there was some sort of stigma attached to me and he wanted nothing to do with me. I slipped out into the hallway and quietly shut the door behind me, only then deciding I could give into my tears. It felt so good to cry, to let out all of the emotions I had been keeping bottled up inside of me. I grieved for my loss of Victor. I grieved for my loss of myself. So much had changed in the last few weeks and finally letting myself embrace my pent up anguish was bliss. Everything hurt, but allowing myself to cry was probably the best thing I could have done to help myself heal.

I stood there outside of Victor’s door letting loose all emotion, pitying myself and trying to make sense of everything that had happened today when my thoughts were suddenly interrupted:

_ Why are you crying, my Queen? _

 

It was the strangest sensation. Whispers in my mind that stopped each and every one of my own thoughts. I picked my head up and looked down the hall, and what I saw was rather unsettling. 

Down at the end of the hallway, under the dimmed lights stood a tall black figure. The helmet concealed his true identity, but the silver grille is what gave it away. It was the Supreme Leader standing there ominously, and when he started his long strides toward me it was like he was a ghost, floating down the hall effortlessly. He was here. He had come to rescue me from this nightmare I was living in my own castle. 


	14. Chapter 14

I straightened himself up and frantically rubbed the tears out of my face. To let anyone, especially the Supreme Leader, see me, Queen of Ellone, cry was embarrassing, and I didn’t want him to think I was as weak as I felt in that moment. “Hello?” I called out, stepping away from Victor’s door and courageously walking toward Ren. His gait never changed. He was still walking up to me as if I was the most important person in the world.

“You don’t have to hide.” He said, his voice faltering to a gentle whisper from behind his mask. “You don’t have to pretend to be strong when something is obviously bothering you.” I felt my hands trembling and the tears brimming in my eyes yet again at his sincere words. He had been the one person in the last few days to actually comfort me the way I needed, and I instantly felt drawn to him. “Care to share what happened?” 

“No. Not really.” I said with a deep sigh. “Why are you here?” I asked him, simply buying time and trying to change the subject from myself. 

“To save you from your grief, I suppose.” I laughed at him, looking back at Victor’s door. If he didn’t approve of me mingling with Hux, then he definitely wouldn’t approve of me speaking with the Order’s Supreme Leader. But did it even matter now? He had already rejected me and I didn’t think there’d be any way to bring respect back to myself in his eyes. “I trust you’ve gotten my letter yesterday?” Ren asked leisurely, and I nodded my head. 

“I did.”

“And your decision?” He leaned in a bit closer to me, as if he were most excited for my answer to this particular question. I shrugged, tried to laugh the awkwardness of this late night meeting off of my shoulders. 

“I mean, I wasn’t opposed to it. Especially after the man behind this door has brutally broken my heart.” I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned against the wall, Ren was quick to follow me with his mask. 

“Who is that, Hux?” I couldn’t help but into burst into laughter at his question.

“No. Definitely not that man.” I looked back up at him only to find him staring back at me, waiting for me to say something in return. I had nothing to say to him, and he was obviously here for me so it made no sense to say anything. I simply smiled at him, and luckily for me he finally took the hint.

“Would you like to come back to the Supremacy with me?” He asked cordially. Even though this  _ Supremacy  _ was mentioned in the letter he sent me, I still had no idea what that was.

“What is this Supremacy?” I asked him, crossing my arms and taking a step toward him. “Is it big like this Finalizer that I was married on?” 

“It’s even better than that.” He said. Even though his voice was being changed by the helmet I could still hear the smugness and pride. “Come, let me show you.” He spoke, turning and walking down the hall. He expected me to follow him, and I had no other choice but to follow him. At this point I had no one. I was questioning my friendships and had lost the one good thing I had in my life that night. At the very least Ren was being nice to me and whatever he had planned would be far better than sitting in this big castle all by myself. So I put my trust in him, and could only hope he wouldn’t steer me wrong.

 

Ren’s ship had landed around the same area I landed when I was coming back to my planet. I was surprised that I didn’t hear it land as loud as it was when we took off, but nevertheless I strapped myself in and sat as still as I could as he took off into the sky. Even though I had spent so much time around technology and these large, intimidating ships and came to find they wouldn’t hurt me, I was still and Ellonian. We are always cautious of technology and this small ship was no different. I sat there focused on my breathing, even when the window turning into nothing but bright blue and white stripes and the ship was going so fast my head was thrown back against the headrest. It didn’t matter how many times I was made to ride in these big, metal beasts, I would never get used to the sensation.

It felt like only the blink of an eye before we were ascending toward the massive ship, and even though I could only see part of it I could tell it was much bigger than the Finalizer. My heartbeat finally returned to normal as we got closer and closer to the port, and I couldn’t help but to wonder why these men needed such huge ships. Were they showing off? Trying to assert themselves among the others in the universe? It seemed so juvenile to me. With my planet being by itself for the longest time I wasn’t used to having to compete like this. It was new, and it was a massive turn off for me.

Ren docked his small ship and hopped out, but when I tried to do the same thing he stopped me. He held his hand out and it took me a moment to realize that he wanted me to grab it. I felt like royalty again as he led me down the ramp of his round ship to the ground, and was upset when he let go of my hand. “Follow me.” He spoke, and I could only obey. I had come this far, there was no going back now.

Walking to wherever Ren was leading me was exhausting. Nevermind the fact that I hadn’t slept all evening long and I was tired, but by the time I got to where he wanted me to be I felt like I had been walking forever. Far longer than it took me to get from the ship to the room on the Finalizer. I didn’t question where he was taking me, but when we finally got there I couldn’t help but to eye the black leather couch that sat in front of me. 

“Have a seat, my Queen.” Ren said respectfully. I smiled at him for just a moment before ambling over to the couch and dropping down. My eyes were drooping and I felt like I could fall asleep at any moment, but fought it as best as I could. I was under the impression that Ren brought me here to speak to him, and unfortunately he would not be able to do that to me while I was asleep. I counted his steps as he pulled the footrest a bit further away from the couch and sat upon it, staring at me through his inhuman mask. I wondered if he was some kind of robot, or a hideous creature beneath that mask and robes. I had never seen him without the mask and I was horribly curious. I heard him giggle, watched his shoulders move up and down. I had forgotten the man had some special kind of mind-reading powers, which I assumed he had just exercised over me. 

“What is so funny?” I asked, becoming defensive in my tired state of mind. He never answered me. Instead he changed the subject drastically. 

“You are a strong woman.” He said, but the compliment didn’t register within me right away. I stared at him, sighing as I felt he was still insulting me somehow. “Do you need more rest?” He asked me before I could come up with an appropriate response. There was no doubt I needed to sleep, and there was no use arguing otherwise. I nodded my head and turned to make myself a little more comfortable on his couch, thinking he was only going to let me stretch out. But no. Ren was far more compassionate than Hux was.

“Lay down. I’ll bring you a blanket and a pillow.” He stood and disappeared down the hall, only coming back with a black blanket and a pillow like he promised. I smiled, realizing that for the first time since I was forcibly married that someone was actually caring for me out of the kindness of their heart. Not because they were forced to, but because he wanted to. I took the pillow from him and placed it under my head, snuggled down and then watched as he raised the blanket in the air and allowed it to fall over me. It was like a black waterfall, pooling around my body and becoming a warm and comfortable hug. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold my eyes open for much longer. It was such a relief to know that even in this unknown location I was in, I was with someone who cared enough for me to make sure I was comfortable.

“Get some rest, my Queen.” Said the Supreme Leader. “Tomorow we’ll have our dinner, and I’ll tell you exactly what I want from you.” He spoke to me in whispers, and if I didn’t know any better I would have said he was almost threatening me. But really, it didn’t matter. I was so warm and comfortable there under his blanket that my eyelids began falling on their own. It seemed to be the perfect thing to worry about first thing in the morning. 

 

It was so bizarre to wake up to no sun rising outside of my window. When my eyes finally peeled open the stars still shone in the window and a large purple moon was framed. I sat up and tried to blink the sleep out of my eyes, thinking perhaps I was still dreaming. I had never seen a purple moon before on Ellone; it was like something right out of a book of fantasies. Once my vision was finally clear I stretched my tired muscles and ligaments, letting out small squeals here and there. I had no idea where the Supreme Leader was, but from the quiet and stillness around me I could assume he wasn’t around. I rubbed some crusted saliva from my mouth and placed my feet on the floor to stand. That was the best sleep I had gotten in the last few days, and I would have done anything to experience it again. But for now, what piqued my interest the most was the sight of the galaxy outside of his window. 

I stepped up to the window. As my eyes settled on the vastness of the universe in front of me, I realized every little sparkle was either a planet, a star, another galaxy, or a huge ship just like this, and I felt my existence shrinking. I was only one person amongst trillions, Ellone was only one planet amongst millions. It was such a crazy thought, to realize how small I really was amongst everything else. My self-esteem was already fractured enough from the previous night, but this only brought more grief. I tucked my chin into my chest as I tried to reason with myself. The Ellonian blood in my veins reminded me that Ellonians were never meant to mingle with others, so obviously these other life forms out there didn’t matter. Right?

The words sounded correct in my mind, but my conscious just couldn’t agree. Life wasn’t just about me and my needs. After being thrust into the hands of the Order there were new people I had to worry about. It was like I had been forced to mature all in a matter of days. And here I was in unfamiliar territory confronting this fear of mine. It was overwhelming, and when the tired fog finally lifted from my mind I realized it might have been a mistake to have Ren lead me here.

“Good afternoon.” An unfamiliar voice rang out from behind me and caused me to jump. I didn’t recognize the man that stood behind me at all. He was tall, had long black hair, and was dressed in a plain white shirt and long grey pants. His facial features were among the strangest I had ever seen. I had never seen such a long, slender nose before and the amount of black and brown freckles that adorned his face was so unusual. Not that minor blemishes and moles didn’t exist on Ellone, but I had never seen so many exist on one person. Not to mention, his skin was only a few shades darker than Hux’s was. I still wasn’t used to seeing such light skin.

“Who are you?” I asked, turning around and backing into the window. My eyes frantically swept the living space I was in, looking for anything and everything I could use as a weapon. The space was so sparsely decorated. No vases, no plant pots, no pictures. Nothing. Just black walls and black floors with white lights built into the walls. I tried to stand as tall as I could to try and intimidate him, but the smile that broke over his face created all kinds of confused and lost emotions inside of me.

“What are you talking about, you silly woman?” He said as he took another step toward me. “You are in my house, and I invited you to have dinner with me.” The realization slowly settled in, and finally in clicked. My body instantly relaxed and it dawned on me. My questions from last night were finally answered. I finally knew who and what the Supreme Leader of the First Order was. He was a man. A man that was clean and well kept. A tall man that carried himself in a way that demanded respect. He was intimidating, but for some reason his company was welcome. I was much more comfortable about him than I was with Hux, and that was probably because he was much more respectful of me. Or at least he was now.

I reciprocated his smile and allowed myself to fall back into a more reserved stance. “Oh, my apologies, Supreme Leader.” A nervous giggle crept past my lips. I felt silly, like I hadn’t actually thought the situation through for long enough. Doing such things can get people in trouble, and the last thing I needed so far away from home was trouble. “I guess I’m just tired. I don’t feel like I’ve gotten enough sleep last night.” My excuse was weak, but it was the only thing I could come up with. 

“Is that so?” He asked, cocking a brow up and flashing me a skeptical look. “Because I don’t know if you caught what I said to you first, but it’s one in the afternoon.” I blinked at him, suddenly feeling embarrassed by my lazy actions.

“I’m, I’m sorry, Supreme Leader,” I stuttered, feeling the blood rushing to my cheeks. I had started to explain myself, about all the stress I had been under the last few days, but he had cut me off with the raise of his hand. 

“No need for apologies. I caught you bawling in the hallway last night.” His voice was soft, quiet, and full of understanding. “I know you have things that need to be resolved. I know you’re struggling, and that’s okay. You obviously needed the sleep and I’m glad you got it.” It was strange that he didn’t smile as he confessed his worry over me. It was like he cared so much, but he was empty and didn’t care at all. “But, my offer still stands.” He goes on, crossing his arms behind his back. My eyes traveled down his chest, over the white shirt as my mind raced. It was so nice to see him in something other than the black robes that concealed every inch of his humanity. “I still want to treat you to a meal, and I want you to listen to what I have to offer you.” 

He started to advance toward me, and the atmosphere of the room instantly tightened around us. It was a strange feeling, but it was welcome all the same. “No matter what that idiot Hux says, I believe that you’re a valuable asset to the Order now that you’re officially a member.”

“So you still want me to have dinner with you?” I asked, completely out of other more sensible replies. 

“No,” He spoke sharply. It made me fear what he would have in mind instead. “I want you to have lunch with me, and then we can discuss your future within the Order.” I let out an awkward giggle at his rephrasing. It was rather late, and my stomach was beginning to growl. He had a point, waiting until dinner would be quite a waste of our time. So without a second thought I nodded my head and agreed to dine with him. 

 

Ren and I sat in silence at different places in his home as we waited for the food to arrive. It was rather awkward, sitting there on his couch with nothing to do. It was like he was trying his hardest to avoid me, at least until the food did come. A human-sized droid carted the food into his home and he took the tray from it, then called me to his table. I stayed quiet, respectfully holding my hands in front of my hips as I patiently waited by his side. When he lifted the tin from the first plate, my mouth immediately began to water. The food that I received during my stay on the Finalizer looked nothing like this. I assumed it was because he held the highest rank of the First Order, but I was a queen! Why couldn’t I have been fed food that looked this appetizing? The tray contained a full-sized steak, with a baked potato on the side and buttered spinach. Even I didn’t always get to eat steak back on Ellone, and I could only hope I would get something equally as good. 

“I’m not sure what you like, so I just ordered you a salad.” My heart sank as the word salad left his mouth. I had eaten my fair share of salads, but they were nowhere near as good as steak. However, when he lifted the tin to my meal, I was blown away.

There were so many colors. So many flavors, and the small cups of dressing on the side meant I would get to choose my flavor. I stepped toward the salad as I marveled the fresh, green lettuce leaves, the ripe blueberries, strawberries, and mandarin oranges. There were even cut up almonds sprinkled on the very top. “Oh, Supreme Leader,” I spoke as he held his chair out for me to sit. “You spoil me!” 

“Nonsense, woman.” He said. I pulled my chair in and picked up the fork he provided me, wasting no time in stabbing a slice of mandarin that was calling my name. “We are both royalty of the First Order. Both of us cannot be spoiled.” I hardly heard what he said, because as he spoke I placed the orange on my tongue and bit into it. Ripe, fruity, juices showered my taste buds, and in that moment I was sure there was no other fruit more delicious that could be found on Ellone. 

Each one of the dressings were listed out in front of me, but after taking a few bites I decided that I wanted more strawberry flavor on my food. As I doused my salad in the light red dressing, the Supreme Leader started speaking to me again.

“So I trust that you’ve been coping with your new-found power?” I lifted my eyes to him, but couldn’t hold back a giggle.

“What newfound power? Ever since I married Hux I’ve felt like my power is slipping through my hands.” I trusted Ren with this information. He had been the only person to treat me with respect in these last few days. I felt like I could air all my grievances to him without any consequences. Even still, I laughed to try and keep the mood light. Ren didn’t seem to care, though. His face still sat so seriously.

“Is that so?” He asked, taking a knife to his steak and beginning to eat it. “He hasn’t tried to teach you like he’s supposed to?” 

My mind traveled back to the previous day when Hux did get me to take his pregnancy test, when he mentioned he was having a meeting with my people about something and invited me to it. “I, I guess he has recently, but I didn’t feel like helping him.” Again, I was truthful. I trusted the man sitting in front of me wouldn’t judge me. He nodded his had as he twirled his fork in his spinach.

“I see. Well I’m sure you know this, but I’ve been monitoring his progress. In the short amount of time together I can tell that he has been taking an interest in the flourishing of your planet.” It was the first real upbeat thing Ren had spoken, and although I was still neutral about Hux it did make me feel warm inside knowing he wanted to see Ellone succeed. “Before he wanted to go in and tear everything down, but I think the realization has finally set in that Ellone is his planet and your people are his people too.” It still made me nervous to hear him speak on things that had, at one point, been just mine turn to his, but I suppose what he was saying was correct. “He is trying, my Queen. Can you tell a difference?”

“I don’t really know how to answer that question,” I said, setting my fork down. “I’m sorry.” 

“He’s hinted at the fact that he’d like to spend more time with you. Did you know that?” I cut my eyes at Ren. Is this really what he wanted to talk about? Was this his big chat he wanted to have over dinner, about me and my relationship with Hux?

“No. How do you know this?”

“Hux is a very busy man. Just because he was awarded the title of king doesn’t mean he can simply ignore his responsibilities on the Finalizer. I messaged him right as I sent the letter to you, telling him that he had to be back on the Finalizer for a meeting with one of his troops. He messaged me back and said he had planned on spending some time with you instead.” My cheeks burned red in embarrassment. What was this all about? I hadn’t the slightest idea this was going on at all. “He said you were facing a kind of medical emergency and he wanted to make sure you were taken care of.” 

“I guess that was true.” I stuttered. Part of me wondered if this was staged. If Hux had told Ren to have this conversation with me. Things became awkward, and soon I found that my appetite had almost completely disappeared. 

“I think he really does have an interest in you, building you up to where you so clearly want to be. What about you? What do you think about all this?” His question put me on the spot, and now I really didn’t know what to say. I didn’t remember having any conversations like this with Hux. How would Ren have known about any of this?

“Well, I mean…” I stumbled over my words, unsure of how to proceed without incriminating myself any further. “Hux, he’s a very good looking guy, and I really do appreciate the fact that he was looking out for my health, but he’s not like me.” A beat of silence existed between us. It was the only excuse I could come up with to hide my true feelings. “He’s an outsider, and I had no say in marrying him. How am I to love someone that is so different from me?” I stayed as passionate as I could while I spoke to him, and yet his face never changed. Nevermind the fact that Hux had been rude to me so many times. Nevermind the fact that we had sex. Nevermind the fact that I caught him stalking me from my own window. How was I supposed to love someone that I was never meant to meet in the first place?

“I think you misunderstood the question, my Queen.” Ren said finally, breaking the silence around us. “I never said anything about loving the man.” My mouth fell open as I stared at him, trying to gather my thoughts together and understand what just happened to me. For the first time his facial features contorted into that of confusion, and I found myself mirroring his actions. He was right, he had only mentioned Hux and his training of me in my Queenship. He didn’t say anything about love, or sex, or anything intimate like that. It was my own mind that made the jump to that conclusion, and I had no idea why. 

“I’m sorry, Supreme Leader. Perhaps I need to make my return back to Ellone now and speak some more with my therapist.” I picked up one of his cloth napkins and wiped my face with it, fully intending to convince him to take me back to my home, but he lifted his hand in the air to stop me.

“Wait.” He said, sounding quite disturbed by my leaving. Despite what mental gymnastics the man had put on me, I still trusted that he wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. Whatever he wanted me to stay for, I assumed it was important and decided to stop and pay attention to him. “Wait, I’d like you to stay.” He said, once again gaining his confidence. “We still haven’t discussed what I brought you here to talk about.” I raised a brow inquisitively at him, thinking this couldn’t possibly be happening to me right now.

“Oh?” I probed, hoping that he’d just get on with whatever he wanted to tell me. “And what’s that, Supreme Leader?” He cleared his throat, pointing back at my seat. I sat just as he wanted me to, and looked him deep in his eyes. I could see some conflict, some kind of fear in his soul. What he was about to tell me wasn’t easy for him, clearly, which only made me more interested in what he had to say.

“Truthfully, I don’t care about Hux. “ He started, picking up his napkin and wiping his mouth off just as I had a second ago. “I don’t care whether he loves you, or you love him, or if you hate each other. When I look at you, I recognize your greatness. That fight you put up in the control room right before your wedding was phenomenal. I haven’t been up against an enemy as strong as you in quite some time. I don’t know how you were trained, and I don’t know what your future entails, but I do know that you’re a very valuable person.” Ren leaned over the table on his elbows, getting as close to me as possible. I thought it was amazing that he was praising me so much, that he thought he could see something in me when Hux couldn’t. The recognition went straight to my head, and with his next words I could tell he would have me right in the palm of his hand.

“If you aren’t willing to train to be a tactical ruler with Hux, that’s fine. You have another option. You can join me here on the Supremacy, let me train you into a noble Knight and you can fight with me along with the Knights of Ren.” My body was buzzing with adrenaline as I watched him reach his hand out to me. Unlike Hux and his borderline threats about ruling, Ren seemed genuine in his efforts to recruit me. I knew I was good. I knew I was fast. I knew I was strong, and had the strength to fight almost anyone and everyone who I came in contact with. It would seem like Ren had seen my strengths and wanted to capitalize on them, unlike Hux who spent most of his time belittling me and claiming he was the only thing that could help me. The choice was so clear, so simple to make. Going with Ren, someone who respected me for the woman I was, to train and fight alongside him felt like the best option of the two I had. But could I really leave my planet to be cared for by Hux? The outsider that had somehow penetrated my thoughts and left me with confusing and conflicting emotions, leaving me questioning and overthinking my every move. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder that there won't be any Kylo/Reader stuff in this story. Kylo is nice but the main pairing is still Hux/Reader


	15. Chapter 15

“I want you to give it all you’ve got.” The Supreme Leader says to me from across the small training room he’s led me to. He stands in just a tank and some tight training pants, holding a wooden training stick. It mimics his stick of fire, but was obviously not as hot and deadly. He had supplied me with my number one weapon choice: two daggers for each hand. I tossed one up into the air, grasping it by the handle as a way to hype myself up. He had already assured me he wouldn’t cause any bodily harm outside of defending himself, but for some reason I was still nervous. Being Queen meant I had as many bodyguards as I saw fit at my disposal, so I didn’t have to do a lot of physical fighting. But that was fine, because that only meant I needed this training that much more. 

“I will try my hardest.” I assured him. I planned my attack out in my head, wondering what his weak points were and what his expectations were for me. Surely he thought I was just going to run at him, to charge at him with my daggers pointed directly at him. That’s what every enemy thinks when they see their opposition standing on the other side of the battlefield. I had to outsmart him, and I didn’t know how easy that would be when he was the Supreme Leader of the First Order.

So I rushed him. A look of war hung loud and proud on my face as I shouted, converting all of my energy into attacking one of the only people that had come to respect me. It seemed silly, but we had already vowed not to inflict too much damage on each other. This was just a test of skill, and I intended to pass with flying colors.

Kylo didn’t seem to do much of anything. He put one leg out in front of the other and put his wooden sword out as a way to defend himself, and it opened his ankles up just the way I wanted them to. He lunged forward in order to block my incoming attack, and instantly my window was open. I dropped to my knees and slide a few inches, tapping his ankle with my wrist just as he told me to do instead of actually cutting him. I managed to roll out of the way of his wooden sword just in time, and immediately clamored to my feet. Now he was actively running after me. I would have to be more in tune with him. 

The man was fast, almost as fast as he was the first time I fought him. The more I managed to tap him, the more ferocious he became. I had to dodge and duck both him and his sword, and eventually he started fighting back with his limbs as well. I was sweating, my mind and body were growing fatigued with every passing minute. I had brought my arms up to try and tap his throat to indicate I would have had time to finally end this battle, but a light kick to my stomach sent me tumbling backward. My knees collapsed and my head hit the hard, wooden floor, creating stars in my vision. The last little bit of energy I had left in me was used to flip myself over on my stomach. When I felt the round, wooden end of Ren’s stick press into the base of my neck, I knew that the fight was over and I had lost.

“Checkmate, Queen.” Kylo spoke in a deep tone full of pride. His sword fell away as I lifted my head, and the smug smile that greeted me almost made me pass out there on the floor. Even though it was just a practice round of fighting, one that was meant to gauge how well I could fight and defend myself, I was still beat. Did Ren really have to go that hard against me? It seemed so unfair. He was so much bigger than me. Of course he would outmatch me faster than usual. I cast one last empty, exhausted look up at him before dropping my head to the floor and closing my eyes. Defeat. It was always so bitter.

“You are strong and agile.” Ren said to me. I could hear his boots thumping all around me, meaning he was circling me like a hawk circles their prey. “You are resilient, tough, and a very worthy opponent.” It was like he was trying to uplift me to get me to fight him again. I turned my head to look at him, interested in what he had to say but fully aware that my body wouldn’t hold up to another fight. “I wouldn’t allow you to beat me. I wanted to see how long you would hold out in a fight against the best, and I was pleasantly surprised.” His boots stopped at the other side of my head. I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck but didn’t have the strength to look at him. “It would be an honor to train you, to mold you into something greater than Hux ever could. You could fight alongside me in battle, and we can accomplish so much more than you could on that meager planet you were born on.”

His insult to my planet sparked some energy within me, and I got the courage to stand up for not only myself, but my people as well. “There is nothing better for me than to stay on my planet, Supreme Leader.” I sneered, then rested my head back down on the hardwood. “If you think you’re rescuing me, or offering me a better life than what I had on Ellone, then I will have to politely decline.” I heard him chuckle over me. It was yet another insult to rub into my wounds.

“Don’t worry, I’m not trying to take you away from Hux.” I blinked at his words, unable to decide if they were even more insulting than what he said about Ellone. “I’m not sure you believed me when I said he’s taken an interest in you. He would be crushed if I took you away.” Once again my mind was filled with images of Hux. Just what was Ren saying to me? Was he speaking as if Hux were my guardian or my keeper, and why would Hux be ‘crushed’ if I were taken away? I growled at the frustration. It was like yet another battle that I didn’t have the strength to take part in. 

“Stop saying such things!” I said aloud, placing my hands on the floor and lifting my torso up. “Hux doesn’t decide where I go or what I do. I’m grown, I can look out for myself.” 

“If you insist, my Queen.” Ren said, squatting down right next to me. “But my offer still stands. Stay here on the Supremacy and allow me to train you. All I need is a few days. I’ll provide you everything you’ll need for survival, and then you can decide if you’d like to stay or not.” I watched as he held his hand out to me, offering to help me to my feet and likely asking for an agreement for his offer. It was a difficult decision. I felt as if I was abandoning my people back at home for Ren and what he was offering me. It seemed like I should have said no immediately, but what was there back at home for me? Sure all of my friends would wonder about where I’ve gone, but what about Victor? What about Hux? The things that kept me loyal to Ellone were all gone, replaced by Hux and his new rulings. I felt like I truly had nowhere else to go, so, reluctantly, I agreed. I looked directly at his boots as I placed my hand in his, couldn’t face the fact that my cheeks reddened as he encircles my wrist with his fingers and then helped me to my feet. 

“Only for a few days.” I warned as he finally dropped my hand. “And under no circumstances are you to contact Hux about my decision.” With a stoic, unreadable expression on his face, Ren nodded his head in agreement. I felt a little bit at ease, albeit confused on his severe lack of emotion. He had all but begged me to join him, and when he finally got the answer he wanted he didn’t even seem to react. 

“Of course. This matter only involves you and I.” He said confidently. It did assure me that he was so firm in his answer. I felt like I really could trust him during this private affair. But it didn’t stop guilt for mounting on my shoulders. It wasn’t as if I was staying here to have sex with him, or to plot someone else's demise. I was only here to train with him, to sharpen my combat skills and that was it. “Now follow me. I will show you to your personal quarters.” The man said, turning and exiting the room without another word. He seemed so cold and distant, the way he just walked off without making sure I was even following him. It was clear that he had one thing on his mind, one expectation of me that he intended to fill. In an odd way, it was satisfying. I felt like I had finally found a comfortable spot where I belonged. 

Ren had taken me throughout the huge maze of identical hallways to a much smaller room than his, it was essentially just a bedroom, a kitchen, and a small lounge area all in one. It was much smaller for my royal tastes, but I swallowed my pride. I was only staying up here for a few days. I’m sure I would survive. 

That evening dinner was delivered to me. Hearty, round scallops on some plant-based pasta with lemon drizzle and lots of greens. Scallops weren’t very plentiful on Ellone. I had only had them twice in my entire life and had forgotten what they tasted like. I halfway expected them to be disgusting. Out of all of the meals that were served to me in the Order only one of them had been acceptable, and that was the one I had gotten from Ren. Even though it did look delicious, I was skeptical as I twirled some of the noodles around on my fork. I sniffed them, but they didn’t smell like anything other than the faint scent of lemon. I thought briefly about stepping out of my room and flagging someone down to get me something I was more familiar with, but I realized it would be a waste if I didn’t at least try it. I hesitated for a moment, but when I finally set the noodles down on my tongue I almost jumped out of my chair.

The noodles were fresh and of much better quality than the meals I had on the Finalizer. I could taste the zucchini as if I had eaten one right from my garden, and the lemon drizzle tasted like it had come from a real lemon. I smiled a big, satisfied smile as I stabbed my fork into one of the scallops, wasted no time in placing the soft sea creature in my mouth. The taste was so rich, the texture was so soft. It was unlike anything I had ever tasted in my life. They weren’t rubbery as they were the first time I tasted them, in fact, I thought they had been cooked to perfection. I placed another one on my fork along with some of the noodles. It felt like I couldn’t chew and swallow the first scallop fast enough. For the first time since I had ever left my planet, I thought I was enjoying myself more than I did on Ellone.

 

I was gone from my home planet for a total of four days. In those four days, Ren pushed me to my limits and back. I trained with him twice a day every day, with only a three-hour lunch and lounge break in between each session. On the first two days he would not allow me to train with my daggers, instead I had to work on dodges and defense. 

Which was a joke.

I couldn’t tell you how many times I ended up face down on the floor because he was faster and stronger than me. It was humiliating, and I found myself getting angrier and angrier with every punch, swing, or jab hat would send me falling to my knees. 

“What is this teaching me?” I shouted, standing to my feet and rubbing my bruising ribs. “You’re using me as a punching bag, I’m not learning anything!” I was in a rage that just couldn’t be quieted. For two days Ren had done nothing but push me around, and I had had enough of it. “If you aren’t going to teach me how to fight, what’s the point of this?” 

The smirk that he answered me with as he wiped the sweat from his brow was sickening. I wanted to punch him so hard that all of his teeth would fall out. He thought this was funny. He laughed at my pain. That hurt even more than the beatings he had given me, and I instantly felt like turning around and walking away from him. I could have been back on Ellone where I was needed, not being laughed at and worked like a dog here.

“And now you’ve finally learned the lesson I had been trying to teach you.” Ren said, standing up straight and pointing at me. “If you spend all of your time trying to do what your enemy expects you to, you’ll never come out victorious.” Both of us went quiet. The only noises that could be heard was the sound of our breathing, at least until my breath caught in my chest. I thought on his words, probably for a lot longer than I should have, but when I finally understood what he was doing to me I was livid.

Without even thinking I rushed at him. Instead of focusing on blocking his movements, I did my best to get one step ahead of him. It was the toughest fight I had ever been in in my life. Using some of the techniques he taught me I was able to keep him off of my back, and soon I found that I had the upper hand. The man was incredibly tall, but somehow I was able to get his hands away from his body so that I could reach for his neck. I hugged him, smelt his sweat and felt it on the side of my face as I weighted my body down as heavily as I could. I could hear him gargle as I choked him, could feel his body bending and stretching downward. He tried to pry me off, but I refused to move. I smiled as he bent at his waist, dropping me to the ground on my knees while he continued to fall like a tree. When he had finally fallen to his knees I let go of his neck. I had won, and I had never tasted a victory that was so sweet.

“Just so you know…” He breathed with his head hung in shame. “Had I used the Force, I would have never let you take me down.” I backed up, beaming and glowing in my pride of taking down someone who was almost twice my size. It didn’t matter what his excuses were, I still won. “But, I am very proud of you. You are growing, and that’s exactly what I wanted to see.”

“Thank you, Supreme Leader.” I said, respectfully bowing my head.

“Dismissed. You may retire for dinner now.” He said, standing to his feet and reaching for my hand.  I happily took it and allowed him to help me to my feet. I didn’t intend to say anything else to him for the evening, but his next comment changed my plan of escape.

“And I’m sure if you ever decide to tell your husband about your milestone, he would be insanely proud of you too.” I stared at him, and for the first time in two days Hux crossed my mind. Why would he be proud of me? He hadn’t even tried to contact me or ask where I was. I looked down and mumbled a quiet ‘thank you’ to Ren, tossing the negative thoughts to the back of my mind. Maybe Ren was right. Maybe, for once, I could make Hux proud of me. Maybe he would be happy to hear that I took the initiative and took my training into my own hands. Maybe he would stop being so rude to me.

Suddenly, I couldn’t wait to make it back to Ellone. 


	16. Chapter 16

The last two days I spent with Ren were spent with daggers in my hand. He had finally allowed me to practice with my daggers against a human-like droid that was fighting with a blaster that fired rubber, non-lethal, bullets. On the first day when he brought it out it was creepy. It was like a human who had their head replaced with a large, metal cube. It wore black clothing with long, black boots, and its movement was so fluid anyone would have thought it was just a man in an elaborate costume. The only thing that gave it away was the sound of the gears grinding and other mechanical noises coming from its body. It was creepy, but with Ren on the sidelines observing my every movement, I felt safe. 

“The droid is designed to mimic a human from the neck down.” He spoke as I got into position. “Anywhere you cut it, it will leak simulated blood. Once a certain amount is lost it will shut down and it will reset itself. Give it your all. Take every little bit of information I’ve taught you, and use it to your advantage.” He said as the droid stepped into a defensive position as well. 

“Is it going to hurt me?” I asked. I knew the bullets wouldn’t do much damage, but I didn’t know how much pain I would have been in if I got backhanded or punched in the face by it. 

“It’s programmed to have the strength of the average individual. I won’t bore you with the numbers an details, but it will be as if you’re fighting one of our own storm troopers. They’re trained to fight with guns. Not with their hands.” As if the droid were listening to him, it cocked its gun and pointed it right at my head. I felt threatened, like the gun were real and were really about to harm me. With my daggers at my side I cut my eyes at Ren and nodded my head, indicating that I was ready to fight. 

Out of the corner of my eye Ren waved his hand, and before I could even react the room was filled with a loud bang. It didn’t take long before I realized that the robot had fired at me, and as quick as I could I dropped to my knees to avoid the bullet. Of course it readjusted it’s trajectory and immediately fired at me again, and I had to be quick on my feet. Even fighting Ren wasn’t this fast-paced, and at first I thought I wouldn’t stand a chance. 

I had to think faster than it. I had to be faster than it. I rolled, ran as fast as I could toward the hyper-realistic, humanoid droid, and gave it everything I could. I was amazed to see it stepping away from me and adjusting its stance in order to fire at me. It was like I was fighting a real person that could see, hear, and touch me. It was terrifying, but I had kept what Ren had taught me in the back of my mind. The first thing you have to do when fighting someone with a weapon is to disable their weapon. 

The thing followed my every move, pointing its gun at me and shooting at me every chance it got. It made it nearly impossible to get to it at close range, so my only option was to send my daggers to it. I didn’t hesitate. The second it had stopped firing at me I tossed on dagger at it, embedding it in its shoulder that held the weapon. The way it reacted was so real, how it stumbled back and covered its wound while deep red liquid poured out from beneath the dagger. It was stunned, and before it raised its arm at me again I took my one and only opportunity. I ran as fast as I could up to it, grasping it by its injured arm and pointing the gun to the floor. It brought its arm up to strike me, but I was faster than it. I lifted my dagger to its proverbial throat and cut the soft flesh until its blood dripped over my hand. I watched as it stumbled back, covering its throat as it staggered to lift its weapon one more time, but I would show no mercy. I went for its knees with my foot and brought it to the ground. I kicked the gun from its hand and stood proudly on the machine, tearing the dagger from its shoulder and plunging it as deep into its heart as I could. The thing spasmed, placed its hand on my wrist to try and pull my dagger out, but it eventually fell still. Dead, cold, and still. I had claimed another victory, and when I turned to look at Ren he was clapping his gloved hands together for me.

“Bravo. Bravo.” He said, stepping over to me. He stood over the robot, looking over my handiwork. He looked like he was impressed, and when he dropped his hand in order to help me to my feet I gladly took it. “You are learning so quickly, but I’m far from finished with you.” He said with a devilish smile. I wiped the profuse sweat from my forehead and pushed my hair out of my face.

“Bring it on.” I said, pointing one of my daggers at him. I wasn’t ready to give up, and I was prepared to fight even harder. He lifted his hand close to mind, pulling the dagger from my fingers and into his. 

“I plan on it, my Queen.” He said. It sounded like a threat, but I was mentally prepared for anything and everything.

 

And boy, did Ren push me to my limits. 

By the final day I had spent with him, I had fought a plethora of droids. Tall droids, short droids. Fast droids. Slow droids. Droids with whips. Droids with guns. Droids with lightsabers, as I had come to know them as. Droids with simulated fire. And I beat them. Every single one of them met their demise by my hand. Every one of them ended up in pieces, writhing on the floor below me as I stewed in my victory. It was awesome, and by the end of the 2nd day Ren was more than impressed.

“You are phenomenal.” He said to me over dinner on my final night. He had made arrangments for me to be dropped back on Ellone the next morning, but not without having one final meal with him. One that he deemed so important, we had to eat in an emptied out, dimly lit ballroom. Such a thing would have spooked me when I first got here, but with Ren I felt safe. Ren had never been cruel to me after I joined the Order. He took the time to train me, to tell me what I was doing wrong, and he opened my eyes to so much; including the way Hux felt about me. I trusted him, and as he complimented me I found myself quite sad about leaving him and heading back to my home planet. 

“Thank you, Supreme Leader.” I said, blushing under his gaze. 

“I have never once trained someone who has learned as fast as you. There’s no reason why you can’t learn more. Won’t you stay, just for another few days?” His smile was so goofy, his begging made me laugh. It was like he was covering up his pleading with humor, and it did not work on me. 

“You have not trained someone like me, because I’ve already been trained in combat.” I smiled as I lifted a spoonful of soup to my lips. It was true. He hadn’t taught that much, but I was still impressed. I felt like I had learned at least some good moves from him, but it wasn’t enough to keep me here.

“While that may be true, it doesn’t change the fact that Hux was right. You’re moldable. You have the capacity to be a warrior.” I let his words linger between us for a minute, but evidently it wasn’t enough for Ren. “Even if you don’t want to stay, I have another proposition for you.” He said, wiping his face with his napkin. “I know about your insecurities. I know that you don’t feel adequate in your role as a Queen, but I’m here to tell you that you are. You  _ belong  _ here with me, and with them.” He said, raising his hand. I cocked a brow at him, unsure of what he was talking about by ‘them.’ He flexed his fingers, and suddenly a round of footsteps echoed from the darkness behind him. 

My eyes widened as a small crowd of cloaked people stepped out from the shadows. They were hard to see at first, for they were dressed head to toe in black just as Ren often did. The only difference was their masks. Their masks were all different from one another. Some of them were longer or shorter at the sides, and others had different patterns on the muzzle. Either way, they were intimidating for sure.

“These are my Knights of Ren.” Kylo said, proudly and to the point. “I’ve trained every single one of them from the ground up, just as I have trained you. They fight, they protect me and protect each other, and they want to protect you.” His eyes remained trained on me the entire time as the people behind him stood like statues. “I want you to join me, my Queen.” Kylo said with a gulp. He was nervous about asking me to join this clan he had come up with, and I had never felt more appreciated in my life. “If not now, then later. But after spending time and training with you, I know that you would be a valuable Knight to fight alongside with.”

The fine hairs on my arms stood as I took in the picture that was in front of me. I felt special. I felt valued. I felt like this was truly where I belonged. With all of these other people lined up behind Kylo who would proudly lead us to greatness. It was awe-inspiring, but I knew in my heart it wasn’t where I belonged. 

“I know you’ll miss your home planet, you’ll miss your friends and you will probably miss Hux. But think about your value. Think about what your people have told you. Why would you choose to waste your talents there, when you can and will flourish here, with me?” He held his hand out across the table, and I instantly started hurting. What he was saying made sense. By all means, he was correct, but I couldn’t accept his offer.

“I am flattered, Supreme Leader,” I said, placing my fork down and clearing my throat. “I really, truly am flattered. But I’m afraid I cannot accept.” I tried to sound as confident as I could, but the look of betrayal on Ren’s face quickly brought me to my knees. I felt like I was disappointing the very last person who actually believed I could amount to something. 

“Why?” He whispered, twisting his head like he didn’t believe I said anything at all. I fished through my mind for an answer, for something that would satisfy him and would make him not so angry with me. 

“Because, I can’t just leave my people. They might not all trust me, but I’m still their queen!” Once again, he and everyone else was silent, waiting for more answers that I couldn’t give them. I could only bumble on and on, until I made the point that I thought was most valid: “They already don’t trust Hux, I can’t, I can’t just leave him to run my planet for me.” 

Ren sighed, lifted his hand in the air, and soon enough all of his Knights behind him shrank away; back into the shadows where they had originally come from. I knew they were still there, standing in the dark like shadowy, still, statues and listening to every word Ren and I would exchange, but nevertheless it still felt like we were alone. I apologized yet again, and it seemed to be the thing that got Ren to speak to me. 

“I understand, my Queen.” He breathed. I had never felt more relieved in my life. “A woman who recognizes her responsibilities and acts on them is admirable in my eyes, always.” Ren pushed his food out of the way and neatly set his eating utensils down next to the plates and stood from the table. Everything about him screamed disappointment in me: his stiff body movements, his forced, neutral facial expression, his reluctance to look me in my eyes. It hurt me possibly more than it hurt him, but I had no other choice. Just yesterday I couldn’t wait to go home and tell Hux about my accomplishments. A part of me even hoped he was missing my presence. No matter how badly I wanted to stay, I was needed on Ellone and nothing could change that.

“But my offer will always be open. Should you need a place to stay, or a change of occupation, please know that our door will always be open.” I watched as Kylo turned and faded into the darkness where his Knights had gone. I was alone, left to soak in my decision with no help whatsoever. Once again, the thought hit me that my life was spiraling out of control. Ever since the First Order took over my planet nothing had ever been the same. Never would I have thought that I’d be rejecting the one person who cared for me in order to run home to the person that I was forced to marry. In fact, I never thought I’d be this close to the First Order at all.

 I managed to fight the tears off before the door we entered in opened and in rolled a droid who announced it was here to return me to my temporary living quarters. I could tell I was changing, molding into what the Order wanted me to be. Before I would have been horrified to see this small, silver and black metallic creature. It was a piece of technology that I had been taught to hate, but now I could see this machine for what it was. It wasn’t here to harm me, to kill me, or to lead me to some other demise. It was here to help me, to make my life just a little bit easier. At that moment, I needed it more than I was willing to admit. So I followed it. With my head down and my heart in pieces, I followed the little machine like my life depended on it. And it got me to my destination safely. It even opened the door for me and saw me inside, like a protective lover would. 

“Is there anything else I can do for you?” It asked in an entertaining robotic voice. 

“Um, yes please. Fetch me a hot cup of tea, please and thank you.” I asked. Part of me thought it was a lost cause. A droid could bring me to my home, but surely it wouldn’t be able to take an order, retrieve it, and bring it back, right? 

“Would you like chamomile, lemon, green, or some other type of tea?” It asked, and I giggled as I told it I wanted lemon tea. “One cup of hot tea. Estimated time of arrival is seven fifty-two PM.” It said, backing out of my room and closing the door behind it. 7:52 was only ten minutes from when I ordered. Once again, I was impressed. I wondered how much the Order was paying for these robots, these mechanical servants versus how much I was paying for the servants at my castle. There must have been a reason why the Order implemented them instead of real people.

True to its word, ten minutes later the droid returned with one cup of hot tea. It was balancing it on its head with a cap to cover it, and when I tried a sip it was divine. It left me feeling warm and comforted, so much so that I was able to sleep within an hour of drinking it all. According to Ren, my transport would be coming early in the morning and would get me back to Ellone around five in the morning. So I rested, ready to return home and present my accomplishments to my people the next morning.

 

The next morning I woke up to the soft sound of beeping next to my head. This room was equipped with an alarm clock as well, and this was much more pleasant than the one on the Finalizer. I woke up well-rested in a comfortable, warm bed. I almost didn’t want to leave, but I knew my people were counting on me to wake up and return to them. I sat up, stretched, and immediately stood to my feet. I was dressed in one of the First Order issued sleeping gowns, something that would never work for the cold hallways of the Order. I would be hot when I got back home, but I chose to wear a pair of black leather pants and a shirt that was only a tad bit small for me, coupled with some ankle high boots and my long hair in a braid. In the mirror I felt like I was staring at a woman that wasn’t myself. A woman with too much confidence, a woman who ate, breathed, and slept badassery. I felt stunning, and by the time a droid was carting itself into my room and telling me my transport was ready I felt like I hadn’t admired myself for long enough.

I felt noble and tall as I followed the droid to the hangar, where I boarded the same type of ship that I thought was a monster. I felt superior and knowledgeable, intelligent next to my people who did fear things of this nature. Dare I say, I finally felt like a  _ Queen.  _ Spending the last few days with Ren really was the kind of confidence boost that I needed, and I couldn’t wait to show off my newfound fearlessness to my entire planet.

I strapped myself in, held on tight, and when lift-off finally commenced I held my breath. In the blink of an eye, Ellone appeared before me. I would forever be thankful for the First Order for allowing me to see my planet like this. It would have been something I never got to see otherwise, and I was always in awe when I got to see her oceans and plains. I wondered briefly if I were able to paint a picture from memory, anyone would believe me. Would my people trust my rendition of the planet? Would they believe me when I painted Ellone’s beauty? There would be no way to tell, and I didn’t even really want to waste my time. They were already skeptical of me. If I tried to show them something they didn’t believe like this they might push me out of the castle for good. 

So I sat in silence, observing my planet’s beauty as the seconds ticked by. The greener areas grew larger and larger, turning into trees and dirt until the person flying the ship had safely landed it in the same spot every First Order ship landed. I was back home. Back to my warmth, back to my familiarity, and back to Hux. 

I unbuckled myself and showed myself out against the wishes of the pilot, allowed the hot air to wrap around my body. It ticked my arms and belly button, the only parts of my body that were exposed at the time, and I came to regret my choice of clothing as I felt the sweat beginning to beat under my leather pants. I needed to get to the castle. Hux would definitely be at the castle. 

The boots helped me get through the thick bushes and rocks that would normally have caused even my rough and calloused feet pain. I felt like I was making my way through the forest quicker than usual, and soon before I knew it, I was standing in front of my home. I sighed, giving into the reassuring feeling of being home and letting all of my worries fall from my shoulders. Before seeking out Hux I wanted to spend some time in my library, winding down with a book and reacclimating myself from living on a man-made object to living on a planet again. However, as I climbed the steps up to the front door, I noticed something about my planet was off.

It was incredibly quiet. There was no wildlife running about, there were no conversations to be heard in the air around me, and no sounds of people moving about through the open windows of my castle. I had never seen it this quiet on my planet before, and I was beginning to grow suspicious.

It was even stranger to open the front doors of my castle and see no one. Not a single person stood in the foyer, no one to greet me like last time, no one to give me an update on my planet for how long I’ve been gone. No Victor. No Hux. No Aurine. No one. My skin was crawling and I grew anxious. What happened to my planet while I was gone?

“Hello?” I called out. My voice echoed off the walls and I got no response. None whatsoever. I called out, again and again, peeking down the halls and into some of the meeting rooms. It really did seem like I was alone, and I didn’t know what to do.

I sprinted out of the room I was in, back down the hall and into the foyer, through the doors where I stood on the steps and shouted for someone, anyone, to show their face. It was horrifying, until I saw the trees and bushes rustling a few yards away from the castle. I took a few steps down as I waited for the creature to appear. For all I knew it could have been a massive predator, or a  _ storm trooper  _ waiting to kill me. But to my relief, it wasn’t. 

“Queenie!” Aurine shouted as she tore through what was left of the bushes and ran up to the castle.

“Aurine!” I said back, rushing down the steps toward her. She had a look of deadly panic on her face, and when she all but jumped into my arms and held me tight she started bawling. “Aurine, what’s the matter?” I asked as she cried on my bare shoulder. “Where is everybody? What’s going on?” I begged her for answers, to tell me why she was so frantic and why my planet was so empty. She sniffed a few times, dragged her arm across her nose and eyes to wipe her tears, and suddenly a hateful look of anger flashed across her face.

“What’s going on?” She asked me sarcastically. “You would know if you hadn’t just disappeared for two fucking days!” She flew out of my hands and had the audacity to shove me backward, and I just managed to catch my footing on the step before falling over. 

“Aurine,” I breathed, unable to believe that my best friend of so many years would turn against me like this. “I don’t under--”

“Where have you been? You’re dressed like one of these people that’s taken over our planet. Is that where you were? Cuddling up with the First Order while your fucking carrot headed husband destroys our planet!?” Aurine stepped forward and, with all of her might, shouted the latter half of her sentence directly into my face. I took another step up the stairs, afraid Aurine would physically lash out at me for leaving her. I stuttered, started to explain my absence when what she said finally hit me.

“Hux, what has he done to our planet?” Aurine laughed, took a step away and then kicked some dirt at me, then turned around and looked into the sky. 

“Take a look yourself.” She offered, pointing at the tops of the trees. I looked to where her finger was, gasping when I realized what I had originally thought was a cloud full of rain was actually a cloud full of smoke. “That’s the rice mill. The terrorists you call the First Order stormed Vekis’s rice mill and set it on fire!” My jaw fell as Aurine explained to me how the single thing that made up the majority of Ellone’s economy was burning to the ground. It was the most important piece of architecture on the entire planet, and Hux was destroying it. 

“Take a good look, Queenie.” Aurine said as spitefully as she could. “Because this is all your fault.” Her hurtful words made me shake down to my core. Tears brewed in my eyes as the blame was shifted onto me where I knew it wouldn’t belong. I had to fix this. I had to find a way to stop this or I would lose what little credibility I had with my people to begin with. 


	17. Chapter 17

I hugged Aurine’s waist tight as we rode on the back of her Varactyl that she used to get to and from the rice mill so quickly. The beastly creature beneath me looked ferocious as it cut through the trees and bushes that stood in its way, but, like many of Ellone’s creatures, they only looked lethal. I had known this Varactyl for years, had ridden on it several times. It knew me. It respected me as I respected it, and it carried me to my best friend’s rice mill without any issues whatsoever. However, what the creature couldn’t provide me was contentment. The closer we got to the rice mill, the stronger the smoky scent got, and the cloudier the air became around me, the guiltier I felt. Aurine hadn’t said anything else to me since we ran off into the woods, and even though I knew this was all Hux’s doing I couldn’t stop berating myself on the way to the rice mill.  _ I should have stayed. I should have gone to this meeting of his. I should have done  _ more.

I allowed a tear to slip from my eye. I was a failure. I was selfish. I was  _ nothing.  _ And I wasn’t the one who was suffering the most for it.

The rice mill was my planet’s staple. It was the number one industry that kept the economy as high as it could go on Ellone, and without it we would crumble. What could Hux possibly be thinking? Was he that angry at me for leaving that he felt he had to burn Vekis’ rice mill? That thought alone made me realize that going to see The Supreme Leader was a mistake. I closed my eyes and tried to talk myself out of that. Hux wasn’t that bad of a person, I was certain of it. But the only thing reassuring myself did was make me think that there was no good reason why he could be burning the rice mill down. 

I pressed my head into Aurine’s back in order to shield my eyes from the now heavy smoke we were riding through. Other than the fact that we had been traveling for upwards of an hour, the smoke getting thicker and thicker was enough to tell me that we had arrived. We broke the trees, into a nearby field where the fires roared around us. My eyes and lungs burned from the smoke, I could just barely see the rice fields that were ablaze as well as the entire building behind it. It was a heart-wrenching scene, and just before I was about to break down into another coughing and crying fit, Aurine finally spoke to me for the first time since we met at the castle:

“The wind is blowing the smoke this way. If we can get to the other side, we’ll be safe.” She said, coughing deeply immediately after. It was like we were moving through a horror movie, desperately trying to survive a devastating fire that was consuming our whole town. It was terrifying, but the moment we came around the corner and out of the cloud of smoke, everything was clear once again. 

The Varactyl came to a halt which sent both Aurine and I reeling forward and then back, and the moment I turned my head I realized there was more chaos than just the rice mill burning down.

“Aurine! Why have you brought this traitor to my rice mill with you?” Vekis’ loud, angry voice rang out over the sounds of the building burning, but he was not what I was concerned over. He came running at me, but I was frozen by the sight of the storm troopers in the fields in front of the building. They wielded massive guns that spit fire, setting the front rice fields ablaze, which Aurine previously thought were untouched. There were even some firing their blasters at the ground, and the only thing I could think of was that my people were in the middle of the field trying to defend it while the storm troopers fired at them. 

Vekis and Aurine were arguing amongst themselves about me, about where I had been verses why I hadn’t done anything yet. I wasn’t around for too long to hear what they were saying, because the second my feet hit the ground I went off running into the fields. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I heart Vekis shout. “The mill is already ruined! There’s nothing you can do to save it!” I refused to believe him. As far as I could see, my people were dying in those fields. And if the only thing I could do is save their lives, then it’s what I would do.

As fast as I could, I ran into the fields, focusing on the closest storm trooper with his blaster pointed to the ground. Everything Ren had taught me over the last few days came rushing back to me, and before my target could turn around I was on his back, wrapping my arms around his neck and forcibly pushing him to the ground. “Stop!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. “I beg of you, stop destroying the rice fields!” I started to maneuver my body in a way that Ren taught me would take my enemies down, trying to keep my composure and make it seem like I was stronger than he. He reached behind me and tried to claw me off, and in response I flipped my entire body over his, succeeding in pressing all of my weight down on his neck and bringing him to the ground. He hit the ground with a loud thud, picked his head up to look at me and almost immediately raised his blaster at me. 

I ducked, managed to kick his blaster from his hand at the very last second. He shook his head and I started to ask what was happening, but before my busy and overworked brain could even form a word someone was grasping me by my shoulders and throwing me into the dirt. I yelped as I hit the ground with a loud thud. Immediately I turned to try and roll away, in the blink of an eye someone had pinned me to the ground with their boot in the center of my chest. The air left my lungs and I lifted my eyes to see three storm troopers surrounding me, two with blasters pointed directly at me and one simply adjusting it’s helmet.

“Just who the hell do you think you are, little girl?” He asked when he finally had it straightened out.

“Let me up at once!” I shouted back, thrashing around to try and free myself. The other two storm troopers placed their feet upon my hands and my hope began to dwindle faster and faster. 

“Didn’t think the natives could get this bold.” Another said, lifting its head and looking at the trooper with his foot on my chest. “Shoot her. She’s interfering with Hux’s plans and he said to eliminate anyone that gets in your way.” My heart immediately jumped into my throat as I choked out a swift ‘what?’ Surely Hux couldn’t be behind such a plan. I thought he was changing, keeping the ideals of our people in mind. I didn’t think he would resort in arson and murder. How many of my people had already been killed at the hands of these men for trying to intervene? How many lives were lost while trying to protect our planets rice mill? The thought was sickening, and what was even worse was the man’s next suggestion.

“Leave her here. Let the vermin take care of her.” 

_ Vermin?  _ That was a new word. A word I was just as unfamiliar with as the feeling of minute, leathery hands and feet running across my hand. I turned to my left and was horrified to see a small, fuzzy, eight legged creature resting on my hand. I gasped, flexing my hand out of shock only to have it land on my elbow and scurry up my arm. It was a Golatai; a type of rodent crossed with an arachnid native to the hilly, open fields of Ellone. They didn’t feed on human flesh, but they ate almost everything else. They were a nuisance, and usually meant the area in which they were occupying was dirty and unkept. They spread diseases from the foods that they ate, and there were even accounts of deaths being linked to their homes being infested with them. At the time I was too petrified to put it together that they were here and they were running throughout the rice mill. The mill wasn’t in a very hilly, open area, and it made no sense that these creatures had made a home here. Yet here they were. Terrorizing me and my people like they did everywhere. 

I screamed as it reached my shoulder, laid three of it’s little, sticky, horrifying appendages on my cheek, and when I turned I saw two more of the little black fuzzy creatures advancing toward me at an alarming rate. 

I didn’t think they were ever going to let me up. I thought they were going to allow the creatures to smother me to death, watch me writhe and scream like a fucked up torture show. I could hear them cackling as I felt my other hand fill with the rough, furry creatures, felt the humiliation burning in my cheeks as they pressed harder and harder onto my body. It felt like my bones wouldn’t be able to hold up for much longer, like they would snap like meager twigs under the weight of their legs. I had abandoned all hope, thought that I really would succumb to these evil beings in the middle of this burning rice field, when suddenly the trooper who had their foot planted firmly on the breast bone was ripped away. 

“What the devil is going on over here?” The voice was all too familiar. The two other men stepped away from me and were soon replaced by the image of my husband. I didn’t know why, but I was incredibly relieved to see such a familiar face. As soon as my hands were free I rolled, sending the Golatai flying in all different directions and reached up to him. “This is your  _ Queen,  _ you imbeciles! How do you see it fitting to treat your queen like this?” When he didn’t acknowledge me I took ahold of his pant leg and pulled myself up, reaching for his hand as all of my self-control withered away. I couldn’t believe how much I missed Hux, just his presence in front of me put me at ease. 

“Hux. It’s you.” I said, reaching up and wrapping my arms around his neck. I held on tight to him, and to my surprise, his arm snaked around my waist and held me to him. I had no idea what I should have been expecting, but it was definitely not this. 

“Are you telling me that you people didn’t recognize the Queen of this planet, or are did you and still decided that abusing her would be acceptable?” I looked up at him and he concentrated on nothing but the three people that held me down, and they didn’t seem to have anything to say until Hux shouted a demand for them to answer him.

“She, she took down RG-3345 while he was shooting one of the vermin, General. We didn’t have--”

“Enough!” He shouted over their nervous babbling. His arm fell from my side and I took a proud stance next to my King as he continued to defend me. “You three are all worthless. To allow an innocent woman to be consumed by the creatures we are trying to eradicate, you make me  _ sick.”  _

“I want them gone from my planet.” I said in a voice just as demanding as his. I looked up to Hux only to find him looking back down at me. He looked stunned, like what I said wasn’t something he expected to hear. If I were being truthful, even I wasn’t expecting to say such a thing. It was the first time I had ever demanded a member of the Order leave my planet. Before I never thought I had the power, before I thought they ruled over me on my own planet. But now, after I spent so much time with Ren, now that I stood next to my powerful husband that had taken up defending me in my time of need, things were different. I felt like the Queen I was supposed to be. I felt like I had the authority over everyone that stood before me.

And it was the best feeling ever. 

“Have them removed at once! These soldiers that have no respect for my people have no business on Ellone.” I turned to Hux once again and was horrified to see him holding his finger up to shush me. 

“And where exactly have you been?” He asked in a snarky tone. My mouth fell open and I jumped back momentarily at his accusatory words. I was expecting him to be just as happy as I was to be home, even expecting me to have missed me a little. But no. Instead he demanded to know where I had been, like I even owed him an explanation.

“Oh, what? No hello? No welcome back home? Nothing?” I asked, once again assuming my high and mighty position of power in front of him. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re burning my planet’s main source of income down right now? Why don’t you offer me an explanation for once?” 

Hux rolled his eyes as he looked back at the three troopers and dismissed them, telling them to return to transport back to the Finalizer where he’d deal with them at another time. The storm troopers ran away in the opposite direction as the fire still roared around us. I crossed my arms over my chest and stared him directly into his eyes, once again demanding he give me the answers I needed. 

“You fled your planet like a coward. Did you really expect no one to run it while you were gone?” He so boldly assumed, and I could only laugh at him.

“You’re calling  _ me _ the coward? I went back to your people on the Supremacy so that they could teach me how to be strong. Unlike you who hasn’t taught me anything except what a white man’s cock is like.”

“You wretched little whore. Just the day before you took your leave I tried to get you to attend a meeting about this place. This, run-down, illness and rodent infested place that you call a rice mill. But you didn’t. You went off to the beach to play all day with your friends, while your citizens were dying of diseases caused by the vermin that have infested this rice mill!” I squint my eyes at him. I hadn’t heard anything about an infestation in the rice mill until that very second. It all sounded so suspicious, until it finally hit me that the Golatai weren’t native to this part of Ellone. 

“I traveled down to the rice mill yesterday, and the conditions were atrocious. These things were living in the rice that was being packaged and shipped to your people. They were breeding in the fields and still, your people would handle the rice like it was nothing! I saw no reason to try and eradicate them because the infestation was too large. The only way to remedy the situation was to condemn it.” 

“Condemn?” I asked, feeling the dread creeping up my back and onto my shoulders. How could it have gotten that bad without me knowing?

“Yes, condemned. Again, did you really expect no one to run this planet while you were gone? That day you had your little vacation I jumped into the issues that had been plaguing your people, and the number one thing was illnesses. I got down to the root of the problem and found the source was this rice mill. These are my people now too, and I wasn’t going to stand there and let them suffer as you seemed to be comfortable doing.” His words were so mean, yet so truthful. I hadn’t realized the infestation was so bad, and I definitely didn’t know that my people were sick. It did make sense. Had I known about the conditions of the rice mill I probably would have done the same. But, one question still begged to be made:

“But, but how will we rebuild it?” I asked, trying my hardest not to cry. “This was the staple crop of Ellone. If we can’t rebuild it, or replace it with something else, our economy will crash!” My strong, powerful demeanor immediately diminished. I wrapped my arms around myself and looked down at his feet in defeat. He held me in the palm of his hand. He could do or say anything to me and there would be no way for me to contest it. It was embarrassing, but I truly had no way to defend myself now that Hux had already taken the welfare of my planet into his hands. 

“I have ways of fixing this conundrum.” He said, his tone suddenly turning soft. I flinched as he tucked his finger under my chin and lifted my gaze to him. Even his face had taken on a more caring and understanding expression. “Would you like to go talk it out in one of the meeting rooms, or would you prefer to stand in the middle of this burning field?” I shook my head, feeling like I should have laughed at what I took as a joke. I realized that Hux was Hux, he likely was giving me the option of speaking with him in the middle of the rice field.

“We can go to the castle.” I said quietly, but Hux only nodded his head. 

“My transport is right outside of the fields. Follow me.” He said. He reached for my hand and when his fingers took ahold of mine my skin broke out in goosebumps. This was the Hux I was fond of. This was the Hux I remembered. This was the Hux that I knew would take care of me, that I knew could teach me right from wrong. All I had to do was trust him.

 

The ride back to the castle miraculously only took twenty minutes on Hux’s small ship. We weren’t going as fast as when I would make the literal seconds long trip out of Ellone into major First Order Territory, but never the less it was still fast. The trees and other foliage flew by, bending, breaking, and becoming destroyed as Hux’s small ship simply mowed them down. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before, and when we came to a smooth halt right in front of the castle I actually smiled to myself. “I don’t think there’s anything on this planet that can go that fast.” I said as I started to maneuver my way out.

“Surely the technology I’ve brought with me isn’t as bad as you thought?” Hux said, and I could hear the smugness in his voice.

“I won’t go as far as to say that.” I chuckled, even though my view on new things had changed dramatically. It was a pride thing. I didn’t want to admit that the First Order was starting to make more and more sense in my life.

 

Inside the meeting room, Hux had opened my eyes to almost everything going on around Ellone. He brought things to my attention that I never would have guessed were taking place on my soil. The number of deaths that had been directly related to the lack of care and sanitation of Vekis’ rice mill was astounding, and he had even guessed how the infestation originally began. He showed me maps of travel, showed me written statements from some of the workers about how horrid the conditions were, and by the time he had presented all of his evidence I sat stunned and speechless. 

“I, I had no idea.” I said, looking over the maps and paths traveled. “Why wouldn’t Victor bring this to my attention?”

“Because it would seem Victor was trying to handle the situation by himself.  Not very responsible if you ask me.” Hux said, leaning across the table to me. I rubbed my eye, trying to think of ways I can remedy the situation but it would seem Hux had me beat. “Since technology is being introduced here, I think we can rebuild the rice mill. We can make it better, have it produce up to 75 percent more pounds of rice a month and even open up trade routes with other planets and make even more money.”

“Open up trades with other planets? Hux, I can’t imagine my people would like that.” The First Order coming here was scary enough, I couldn’t imagine bringing in even more Outsiders would sit well with them. 

“I know it’s not something to be comfortable with, but look at the state of your planet before the Order stepped in.” Hux said, closing all of his books and putting away his maps. “If I hadn’t taken over the tragedy that was the rice mill would have gone on and on until who knows when. As a person in power, you have to make the necessary changes to ensure your people prosper. Dismantling old ways of living is scary, I understand, but this planet has already suffered enough.” 

I watched as Hux pushed his material away and stood from the table and reached for my hand. I allowed him to pull me from the chair, stood in front of him as he crossed his arms behind my back. “I am happy to have you back, and this time I won’t make the final decision without your input. Take a few days and think about what you’d like to do. Remember, you have the power to end traditions. There’s no reason to continue the ways of your planet when they’re causing more harm than good.”

I thought about what he was saying, thought about the lessons I learned from Ren, and thought about how I viewed technology so differently. Hux was right. The technology he had introduced me to was relatively harmless. What he offered about trade routes and opening the planet up to others seemed like a good idea, but at the time it made me uneasy. I nodded my head, told him I would, indeed, think about everything he’s told me, and I turned and tried to leave without any more conflict. I had a lot to think about, and I would have preferred to do it alone.

However, Hux caught me in his arms. Before I knew it he was hugging me, resting his head on my shoulder and I was doing the same. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him as hard as I could. In a way, I was silently thanking him for what he had shown me and done today, since I hadn’t said it out loud. 

“I missed you.” Hux whispered, and I melted in his arms. “Please, if you ever need to leave again, let me know. I worried endlessly about you.” I smiled into his shoulder. It was the first time in a long time I had actually felt important on Ellone. And I would be damned if it would be the last. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about the delay. A crisis has taken place in my life that's left me little to no writing time. I'm trying to work through these issues so that I can get back into the swing of things. I miss writing for enjoyment.


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